Microchilus robustus (C.Schweinf.) E.C.Smidt & M.W.Chase 2021

Drawing by © Foldats 1969

Common Name The Robust Microchilus

Flower Size

Found in Colombia, Venezuela and Guyana in sloping rainforests at elevations of 610 to 1400 meters as a large sized, warm to cool growing terrestrial with a robust, decumbent then erect stem carrying 5 to 6, near the middle or below on the stem, ovate-elliptic, to elliptic-lanceolate, longly acuminate, attenuate below into the channeled, petiolate base leaves that blooms in the winter on a terminal, erect, peduncle glabrous, enveloped by various ovate-lanceolate, acute to acuminate bracts, rachis, spicate, 6.8 to 9.6" [17 to 24 cm] long, densely many flowered inflorescence with oblong-ovate, acute to subacuminate, concave, shorter than the ovary floral bracts.

" Microchilus claviger is similar but M robustus differs in the larger flowers dissimilar lip and nearly twice as long spur. M robustus is separable from Microchilus boliviensis by the longer and more slender roots, much broader leaves, larger flowers with a different lip. The flower segments are larger and the width ratio between the hypochile and epichile are somewhat different as well. .32 to .24" versus .24 to .28" [8 to 6 versus 6 to 6.2 mm] but the most discriminative is the spur length and for, M robusta has a [2.6 cm] long, spur that is narrowly cylindrical and abruptly dilated in the apical part. The spur of M boliviensis is longer to [3.7 cm] cylindrical, slightly sinuate, more or less swollen below the middle and acute." Szlachetko & Kolanowska 2017

Synonyms Aspidogyne robusta (C.Schweinf.) Garay 1977; *Erythrodes robusta C.Schweinf. 1962

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ;

Bot. Mus. Leafl. 20: 8 C Schweinfurth 1962 as Erythrodes robusta

Flora de Venezuela Volumen 15 primera parte Foldats 1969 drawing fide;

Bradea 2: 203 Garay 1977 as Aspidogyne robusta;

Orchids of the Department of Valle de Cauca Colombia Vol 1: Kolanowski and Szlachetko 2012 drawing fide;

Materials to the Orchid Flora of Colombia Vol 1: 404 Szlachetko & Kolanowska 2017 drawing fide;

* Bot. J. Linn. Soc. 197: 343 E.C.Smidt & M.W.Chase 2021

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