Microchilus hirtellus (Sw.) D.Dietr. 1852
Plant and Flowers in situ St Lucia
Photos by © Roger Graveson and his Plants of Saint Lucia Webpage
Photo by Richard GAUTIER and his Guadeloupe Orchid Website
Drawing of Erythrodes hirtella
Drawing of Erythrodes hirtella by Fawcett & Rendle Flora of Jamaica: pl 3 16-19 1910
LATER
Common Name The Bristely Microchilus
Flower Size .2" [5 mm]
Found in Cuba, Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Leewards, Puerto Rico, Trinidad and Tobago, the Windwards, Fr Guiana, Guyana and Surinam? in damp areas in woodlands at elevations of 750 to 950 meters as a miniature to small sized, warm growing terrestrial with a slender, sparsely pilose stem carrying below, 5 to 8, ovate to ovate-lanceolate, acute, gradually narrowing below into the rather elongate, petiolate base leaves that blooms in the later winter and spring on an erect, hairy, 1.2 to 2.4" [3 to 6 cm] long, densely many flowered inflorescence with lanceolate, acuminate, sparsely pilose floral bracts and carrying small flowers with the sepals sparsely glandular.
"After study of many specimens of Microchilus hirtellus, I have come to the conclusion that it comprises two distinct entities. The type form may be recognised by its ovate leaves, densely flowered inflorescence, flowers with a short .036 to .044" (.9 to 1.1 mm long) spur, and short, obovate-elliptic epichile lobules. The other entity, here described as M. familiaris, may be recognised by its oblong-lanceolate leaves, laxly flowered inflorescence, flowers with a longer .76 to .084" (1.9 to 2.1 mm long) spur, and ligu- late epichile lobules. Both species are occasionally sympatric and both are self-pollinating due to the column lacking a rostellum." Ormerod 2009
"Similar in size and flower morphology to the Ecuadorian Microchilus weberianus but they are distinguished by the form of the epichile lobes, filiform in M hirtellus and sub-quadrate-lunate in M weberianus." Szlachetko & Kolanowska 2017
Synonyms Erythrodes hirtella (Sw.) Fawc. & Rendle 1910; Habenaria hirtella (Sw.) Spreng. 1826; Orchis hirtella (Sw.) Sw. 1800; Physurus hirtellus (Sw.) Lindl. 1840; *Satyrium hirtellum Sw. 1788
References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ;
Prodr. Veg. Ind. Occ.: 118 Sw 1788 as Satyrium hirtellum
Kongl. Vetensk. Acad. Nya Handl. 21: 207 Sw. 1800 as Orchis hirtella
Syst. Veg., ed. 16. 3: 690 Spreng. 1826 as Habenaria hirtella
Gen. Sp. Orchid. Pl.: 501 Lindley 1840 as Physurus hirtellus
* Syn. Plant. 5: 166 D Dietr. 1852
Flora of Jamaica: 29 Fawcett & Rendle 1910 as Erythrodes hirtella
Flora of Jamaica: pl 3 16-19 Fawcett & Rendle 1910 as Erythrodes hirtella drawing good;
Flore Descriptive des Antilles Francaises H. Stehle 1939 as Erythrodes hirtella;
Native Orchids of Trinidad Schultes 1960 as Erythrodes hirtella;
Flora of the Lesser Antilles Garay & Sweet 1974 as Erythrodes hirtella drawing fide;
An Orchid Flora Of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands Ackerman 1995 as Erythrodes hirtella drawing fide;
Orchid Flora of the Greater Antilles: 331 Ackerman 2014
Orchid Flora of the Greater Antilles: 332 Ackerman 2014 drawing fide;
Materials to the Orchid Flora of Colombia Vol 1: 270 Szlachetko & Kolanowska 2017 drawing fide;
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