Stelis rosamariae Luer & Hirtz 2002 SECTION Humboldtia

TYPE Drawing by Carl Luer

Common Name or Meaning Rosemarie's Stelis [Rosemarie Zloch co-collector of the type current]

Flower Size .32" [8 mm]

Found in Tungurahua, Morona-Santiago, Azuay, Loja and Zamora-Chinchipe provinces of Ecuador at elevations of 2150 to 3100 meters as a miniature sized, cold growing, caespitose epiphyte with erect, stout ramicauls enveloped by a close tublar sheath in the middle third and another 1 to 2 others at the base and carrying a single, erect, coriaceous, elliptical, subacute to acute, cuneate below into the petiolate base leaf that blooms in the summer, fall and winter on 1 to 2, erect peduncle .4" to 2" [1 to 5 cm] long, arising through a spathe .24 to .4" [.6 to 1 cm] long, with an annulus below the apex of the ramicaul, rachis 3.6 to 6" [9 to 15 cm] long, subcongested, distichous, mostly simultaneously many flowered inflorescence with oblique, acute, widely inflated, almost as long as the ovary floral bract and carrying flowers with light brown glabrous externally, cellular glandular within sepals, light green, thick, transversely semi-lunate petals and a thickly triangular lip.

"Similar to S purpurea but S rosemarie has acute, petiolate base leaves, racemes vary greatly in length but the bractsare more or less inflated. The flower is readily identified by the gibbous protrusion of the synsepal, and the conical swelling on the inner margin of the petals, The latter is sometimes nearly absent. The lip is also broad with a thick. obtuse apex. The bar is bicallous with a rounded dorsal callus." Luer 2002

Synonyms

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ;

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

Icones Pleurothallidinarum XXIV A first Century of Stelis of Ecuador Luer 2002 Drawing fide;

Native Ecuadorian Orchids Vol 5 Dodson 2004 drawing fide

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