Stelis glaberrima Luer & Hirtz 2002 SECTION Stelis

TYPE drawing by Carl Luer

Common Name The Very Glabrous Stelis [refers to the sepals]

Flower Size .28" [7 mm]

Found on the eastern slope of the Andes of Ecuador at elevations around 1800 meters as a mini-miniature sized, cool growing, caespitose epiphyte with erect, slender ramicauls enveloped by a loose tubular sheath and 1 to 2 others at the base and carrying a single, apical, erect, coriaceous, elliptical, subacute, cuneate below into the petiolate base leaf that blooms on an erect, peduncle 1" [2.5 cm] long, arising through a slender spathe .2" [.5 cm] long, with an annulus below the apex of the ramicaul, rachis 4 to 5.6" [10 to 14 cm] long, strict, congested, distichous, successively several, many flowered inflorescence with infundibular, oblique, acute, longer than the ovary floral bract and carrying flowers with light brown, totally glabrous sepals, yellow transversly ovate-oblong petals amd a yellow thickly subquadrate lip.

"The species is distinguished by the small habit, the elliptical leaf considerably longer than the ramicaul, a several flowered inflorescence. exceeding the leaf, camparitively large flowers with totally glabrous, broadly ovate, five veined sepals, standard transverse petals and a shallow subquadrate lip."luer 2002

Synonyms

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ;

* Icones Pleurothallidinarum Vol XXIV A First Century of Stelis of Ecuador Luer 2002

Icones Pleurothallidinarum Vol XXIV A First Century of Stelis of Ecuador Luer 2002drawing fide;

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