Masdevallia cranion Luer 1989 SUBGENUS Masdevallia SECTION Masdevallia SUBSECTION Masdevallia
Photo courtesy of Lisa Thoerle
Photo courtesy of © Lourens Grobler
TYPE Drawing by Carl Luer
Common Name The Skull-Shaped Masdevallia
Flower Size 3/4" [2 cm]
Found in Peru in cloud forests at elevations of 1800 to 2000 meters as a mini-miniature sized, cool growing epiphyte? with slender, erect, ramicauls enveloped basally by 2 to 3 loose, tubular sheaths and carrying a single, apical, erect, coriaceous, broadly elliptical, obtuse leaf that is cuneate below into a petiole and blooms in the winter on an suberect, slender, 1 3/5 to 1 3/4" [4 to 4.5 cm] long, single flowered inflorescence arising from low on the ramicaul and having a bract near the base and a tubular floral bract.
Only a few Masdevallia have small obtuse, petiolate base leaves and a relatively large, yellow to yellow-orange flower, they are M deniseana, M glomerosa and M medinae
Synonyms
References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; Icones Pleurothallidinarum XXII Systematics of Masdevallia Part 3 Luer 2001 drawing fide; Masdevallia's in Kleur Vol 1 P M Oversteegen, Eisses & A P Sijm 2001 photo fide; Orchids Masdevallia with its segregates including Dracula Zelenko 2014 photo fide;
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