Cranichis fertilis (F. Lehm. & Kraenzl.) Schltr. 1921 Photo by © Lourens Grobler.

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Common Name The Fertile Cranichis

Flower Size 1/10" [2 mm]

Found in Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru in montane cloud forests at elevations of 1000 to 3000 meters as a miniature sized, warm to cold growing terrestrial with a basal rosette of narrowly linear, acute, non-petiolate leaves that blooms at most any time of the year on a terminal, slender, erect, 10 2/5" [26 cm] long, densely several to many flowered inflorescence carrying non-resupinate, pubescent, campanulate flowers.

I have found some confusion here, The photo above fits most of the references I have as C fertilis but Orchid Species of Peru Zelenko, has another species photo for this one with no pubescence and a wider more hooded lip. The orchid in the photo is listed in the same book as Exalaria parviflora which all the others have as a synonym of C fertilis and it has pubescence on the inflorescence and the sepals and a more globose hidden lip. As I have not seen the type drawing I cannot be sure of this determination.

Synonyms Cranichis koehleri Schltr. 1921; Cranichis pycnantha Schltr. 1920; Exalaria parviflora (C.Presl) Garay & G.A.Romero 1999; *Goodyera fertilis F.Lehm. & Kraenzl. 1899; Ophrys parviflora C. Presl 1827

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; Die Orchideen der Sudamerikanischen Kordillerenstaaten II Colombia Schlechter 1920 as C pycnantha; Die Orchideen der Sudamerikanischen Kordillerenstaaten IV Peru Schlechter 1921 as C koehleri; Venezuelan Orchids Vol 5 Dunsterville & Garay 1966 drawwing fide; Flora de Venezuela Foldats Volumen XV Part 1 1969 as C pycnantha drawing fide; Icones Planetarum Tropicarum Plate 366 Dodson 1980 drawing fide; Icones Planetarum Tropicarum Series II Orchids of Peru Plate 0035 Dodson & Bennett 1989 drawing fide; Icones Orchidacearum Peruviarum Plate 428 Bennett & Christenson 1998 drawing fide; Orchid Species of Peru Zelenko Bermudez 2009 photo not

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