Epidendrum alejandrinae Hágsater & H.R.Quispe, 2022

Quispe-Melgar, Harold Rusbelth, Llacua-Tineo, Yashira Stefani, Ames-Martínez, Fressia Nathalie, Huayta, David, Poma, Katherine Lucero Lagones & Hágsater, Eric, 2022, Epidendrum alejandrinae (Orchidaceae: Laeliinae), a new species from the high Andean forests of central Peru, Phytotaxa 541 (3), pp. 217-224 : 220-223

Epidendrum alejandrinae Hágsater & H.R.Quispe , sp. nov. ( Figs. 2 , 3 )

TYPE: Peru. Huancavelica Region: Tayacaja Province, Andaymarca District; Sune locality, 3900 m, semi humid high Andean Forest , epiphyte on Gynoxys sp. , 29 August 2021, H. R. Quispe 125 (holotype HOXA) .

Similar to Epidendrum ochoae but the flowers green, concolor (vs. flowers yellow-green, irregularly tinged with purple dots), sepals 8.7–9.0 mm long (vs. 6.5 mm long), and the lip with elongate calli, thick (vs. ellipsoid, laterally compressed), parallel (somewhat divergent), relatively small, 1.7 × 0.7 mm (vs. calli prominent).

Epiphytic, sympodial, caespitose, pendent herb, ca. 30 cm long. Roots 3 mm in diameter. Rhizome short, 1 cm long. Stems 2.0–3.2 × 1.0 cm, aggregate, short, green, thickened into an ovoid pseudobulb. Leaves 3, articulate; 2 produced from basal and middle internodes and one from the apex of pseudobulb; blade 8.0–12.0 × 1.0– 1.6 cm, lanceolate, coriaceous, green, margin entire, crenate towards the apex. Spathe lacking. Inflorescence 8.0–12.5 × 0.1–0.3 cm, apical, from mature stem, pendulous, flowers successive, ca. 10 flowers open at a time, pendent; peduncle 3.5–4.5 cm long, laterally compressed, ancipitose, straight, with nodes at base and 1 bract 1.5 cm long; rachis terete, straight and sulcate. Floral bracts 8–10 mm long, 1/2 the length of the ovary, triangular, long-acuminate, dorsally granulose, yellow with irregular lighter yellow dots. Ovary clavate 13.0 × 0.6–3.0 mm, furrowed, with a small ventral swollen vesicle at the apex. Flowers 15–25, successive, opening from base towards apex of inflorescence, resupinate, green, concolor; fragrance not registered. Sepals partly spreading, free, margin entire; dorsal sepal 9.0 × 3.6 mm, oblong-elliptic, minutely mucronate; lateral sepals 8.7 × 3.3 mm, elliptic-oblong, acute, with a prominent dorsal keel, 3-veined. Petals 7.0 × 1.1 mm, partly spreading, arching forward in natural position, linear-oblanceolate, sub-obtuse, 1-veined, margin entire, spreading. Lip 6.7 × 10 mm, adnate to column, 3-lobed, transversely cordiform-elliptic in outline, convex, base somewhat cordate, distal margins erose-denticulate; bicallose, calli elongate, parallel, 1.7 × 0.7 mm, separated by a thick mid-rib, disc with 3 parallel, broad and very low ribs, mid-rib reaching apical sinus, lateral ribs in front of calli ending at base of mid-lobe; lateral lobes 3.0 × 4.8 mm, widely dolabriform; mid-lobe 2.0 × 4.4 mm, widely cuneate, apex emarginate. Column 5.6 × 3.4 × 3.2 mm, short, thick, obcuneate, apex forming an obtuse angle with lateral wings. Clinandrium-hood short, margin entire. Rostellum apical, slit. Lateral lobes of stigma small, in a small stigmatic cavity. Nectary penetrating 1/4 of pedicellate ovary, unornamented, forming a somewhat widened vesicle behind perianth. Anther transversely ellipsoid, apex emarginate, front papillose, brown with sides cream-colored, 4-celled. Pollinia 4, obovoid, laterally compressed; caudicles soft and granulose, as long as pollinia; viscarium semi-liquid. Capsule 39 × 17 mm; pedicel 7 × 1.5–5 mm, conical; body 27 × 17 mm, ellipsoid; apical neck 5 × 3.5 mm, thin.

Etymology

Honoring the memory of Mrs. Alejandrina Melgar Sotomayor (1957-2020), mother of the first author, who was born in the Region of Huancavelica in life had a great passion for plants and their flowers, always inspiring a deep respect for nature.

Distribution and ecology

Known presently only from the Region of Huancavelica, in central Peru. The plant that served as type was collected in the upper part of the locality of Sune, near the Judas lagoon, in the middle Mantaro river basin, approximately 20 km from the Amaru-Huachocolpa-Chihuana Cloud Forest RCA. It was found growing in a semi-humid forest dominated by Polylepis albicans Pilger (1906:535) ( Boza et al. 2019), epiphytic on a specimen of Gynoxys , an environment that is typical of the high Andean ecosystem surrounded by a matrix of grassland, with the presence of other genera such as Escallonia and Lupinus Linnaeus (1753:721) , at 3900 m in elevation. Flowering was recorded in August ( Fig. 3 ).

Conservation Status

DD. Data deficient. Known presently only from the type.

Comments

Epidendrum alejandrinae belongs to the Epidendrum ‘Rupestre’ group ( Hágsater 2004), which is characterized by the caespitose, sympodial plant, the pseudobulbous stems with 1-4 fully developed leaves toward the apex, the lack of spathes at the base of an erect, racemose or paniculate inflorescence, the lip ecallose or bicallose and with several fleshy thickened keels on the disc. The group presently consists of 13 localized species found at very high elevations between 3000-3900 m, and widely distributed from northern Colombia to southern Peru. They are very similar both vegetatively and florally, with variation in the length and width of the leaves, size of the flowers and shape of the lip, with or without calli, and always with a thickened disc with 3-5 thickened and varying ribs. The highest diversity is found in Peru with nine recorded species, followed by Ecuador (2 spp.), Bolivia (1 spp.) and Colombia (1 spp.).

The new species is similar to E. ochoae from Machu Picchu, Cusco, which has yellow-green flowers irregularly tinged with purple dots, especially on sepals and lip, sepals 6.5 × 3.5–4.0 mm, and the lip convex, bicallose, the calli prominent, ellipsoid, laterally somewhat compressed, somewhat divergent, disc 3-carinate, the lateral ribs low, the midrib prominent, forming a fleshy, irregular, obovoid protuberance which nearly reaches the apical sinus. Epidendrum aida-alvareziae , from Cajamarca in northern Peru, has shorter, narrower leaves, 0.6–5.0 × 0.5–1.0 cm, sepals 5.0–7.3 × 2.8–3.3 mm, and a shallow 3-lobed lip, the apical half looks more like a truncate pyramid in general outline, with the mid-lobe emarginate, bicallose, the calli prominent, ellipsoid, parallel, laterally somewhat compressed, disc 3-ribbed, the ribs low, parallel. Epidendrum pachydiscum , from Huancabamba, Piura, also has smaller leaves, 1.3–4.1 × 0.7–1.2 cm, sepals 5.3–5.8 × 2.4–2.5 mm, and the lip deeply 3-lobed, with the mid-lobe deeply bifid, the lobes somewhat divergent, sub-rectangular, oblique, the outer margin curved and entire, the inner margin dentate to short-fimbriate, sinus widely mucronate, and ecallose, with 3 well-defined, central ribs, the lateral pair somewhat shorter than the midrib ( Fig. 4 ).

Species in the Epidendrum rupestre Lindley (1841:84) complex are associated with high Andean ecosystems such as forests and Paramo grasslands and are epiphytes of tree genera such as Polylepis , Escallonia , Gynoxys and Buddleia Linnaeus (1753:112) . This type of ecosystem is important for their conservation.

Figures

FIGURE 2. LCDP of Epidendrum alejandrinae. A. Habit, inflorescence and fruit. B. Dissected perianth. C. Flower, front view. D. Column, lateral view. E. Column, ventral view. F. Column and ovary, dissected view. G. Anther, front and back view, and Pollinarium. H. Inflorescence. Photographs by Harold Rusbelth Quispe-Melgar from the type, H.R.Quispe 125.

FIGURE 3. Epidendrum alejandrinae. A, B. Habit and complete plant. C. Flowers. D, E. Habitat. Photographs by Katherine Lucero Lagones Poma (A and D) and Harold Rusbelth Quispe-Melgar (B, C and E).

FIGURE 4. Comparison of species similar to E. alejandrinae. Plates B–D were adapted from Icones Orchidacearum (Hágsater 2004; Collantes & Hágsater 2015; Hágsater 2016). A. E. alejandrinae. B. E. ochoae. C. E. aida-alvareziae. D. E. pachydiscum. Illustrators: A: Daniel Galarza. B: Benjamín Collantes. C–D: Rolando Jiménez.