Pleurothallis crocodiliceps Rchb. f. 1855

SUBGENUS Ancipitia SECTION Ancipitia Luer 1986 Photo courtesy of Richard Korber.

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Common Name The Crocodile Head Pleurothallis

Flower Size 2/5" [1 cm]

Found as a small sized, hot to cool growing epiphyte at elevations of 400 to 3000 meters from Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela with slender, erect ramicauls that are sharply ancipitous above the middle and 2 to 3 basal, tubular sheaths and another larger one just below the middle, carrying a single, apical, rigid, coriaceous, ovate, acute, rounded base, cordate, sessile leaf that gives rise to a fascie of solitary, successive flowers, bourne from a reclining spathe, 1/12th" [3 mm] long, filiform, reclining ascending to erect inflorescence witha single tubular floral bract that carries a single successive flower occurring in the summer.

Synonyms Ancipitia crocodiliceps (Rchb.f.) Luer 2004 ; Humboldtia crocodiliceps (Rchb.f.) Kuntze 1891; Humboltia crocodiliceps (Rchb. f.) Kuntze 1891; Pleurothallis arietina Ames 1923; Pleurothallis microchila L.O.Williams 1967; Pleurothallis nelsonii Ames 1923;

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; Lankester's Epidendra Website CR as P arietina; Schedul. Orchid. 4: 16. 1923 as P arietina; AOS Bulletin Vol 27 No 6 1958; Flora de Venezuela Foldats Volumen XV Part 2 1970; Fieldiana Biology, Vol 33, 1st Supple. to the Orchids of Peru Scweinfurth 1970; Icones Pleurothallidinarum Systematics of Pleurothallis Vol 3 Luer 1986; Icones Pleurothallidinarum Systematics of Pleurothallis Vol 3 Luer 1986 as P arietina; Systematics of Pleurothallis Vol 3 Luer 1986 as P nelsonii; Icones Pleurothallidinarum Systematics of Pleurothallis subgen Ancipita, Scopula and Trisetella Vol 6 1989; Native Colombian Orchids Vol 6 COS 1998; Icones Orchidacearum 5 - 6 Orchids of Mexico Part 2 - 3 Plate 640 Hagsater & Soto 2002 as P nelsonii

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