Stelis preclara Luer & Hirtz 2002 SECTION Humboldtia

TYPE Drawing by Carl Luer

LATE

Common Name or Meaning The Very Pretty Stelis

Flower Size .32" [8 mm]

Found in western Colombia and Tungurahua province of Ecuador at elevations around 2400 meters as a small sized, cold growing, caespitose epiphyte with erect, stout ramicauls enveloped by a close tublar sheath above the middle and another 2 to 3 others at the base and carrying a single, erect, coriaceous, elliptical, obtuse, abruptly contracted below into the stout, shortly petiolate base leaf that blooms in the late spring on an erect peduncle 4" [10 cm] long, arising through a spathe .8" [2 cm] long, with an annulus below the apex of the ramicaul, rachis 2 to 3.2" [5 to 8 cm] long, congested, distichous, mostly simultaaneously many flowered inflorescence with infundibular, oblique, almost as long as the ovary floral bract and carrying purple flowers with glabrous externally, minutely pubescent within sepals, transversly semi-lunate petals and a thick lip.

"Similar to S purpurea but S preclara is distinguished by the large habit, large elliptical, abruptly petiolate base leaves and a congested raceme of relatively large, purple flowers produced in two ranks. The dorsal sepal is broadly elliptical to suborbicular with nine veins, the synsepal is deeply concave with a mentum. The petals are semi-lunate and the lip triangular, subacute and concave with a narrow glenion." Luer 2002

Synonyms

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ;

* Icones Pleurothallidinarum XXIV A First Century of Stelis of Ecuador Luer 2002

* Icones Pleurothallidinarum XXIV A First Century of Stelis of Ecuador Luer 2002 Drawing fide

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