Hapalorchis

Hapalorchis lineata fig. III

Hapalorchis is a genus of the orchid family (Orchidaceae ), which contains eight species. They are widespread in tropical America.

Description

The Hapalorchis species are terrestrial, rarely epiphytic growing, small, herbaceous plants. The roots are in clumps or something on a creeping rhizome spread, they are bulbous thickened, fleshy and hairy. The leaves are heaped in a loose rosette at the base of the shoot. They are clearly stalked, the blade base includes the shoot. The leaf blade is oval to slightly cordate, it ends pointed.

The terminal inflorescence is slim, wenigblütig and einseitswendig. Only at the top of it is a little hairy. He is partially enveloped by tubular bracts. The flowers are small, delicate, white or greenish. They are 'upside down, more or less tubular and projecting horizontally. The ovary is sitting up very short-stalked, he is facing up. The sepals are equal to each other formed, not fused together, parallel to each other, only slightly apart gaping. The lateral sepals are spatulate, baggy asymmetrical and slightly at the base, they form together with the lip a rounded depression ( mentum). The petals lie on the dorsal sepal and stick with the edge on to that. The lip is not narrowed at the base, concave, indistinctly two-piece base, where the edge is thickened to two nectar glands, but not auriculate. The lamina of the lip is rinnig with remote, beaten down terminal lobe. The column is slender and club-shaped, hairy, extended at the base about the attachment point on the ovary out ( pedestal ). The scar consists of an area, this is semi-circular or triangular indicated. The stamen is to a large part by a funnel-shaped fabrics of the coated column ( Klinandrium ). It is oval, with heart-shaped base and pointed forward. The pollinia are club-shaped with oval to roundish - lanceolate viscid disc ( Viscidium ). The separation layers between stamen and stigma ( rostellum ) is almost straight, elongated triangular to ligulate, flexible, notched at the top after removing the Viscidiums.

Occurrence

Hapalorchis is in Central America, the Caribbean, widespread in the Andes of South America and along the Brazilian coast. There are colonized to about 2400 meters altitude from sea level. The sites are mostly in the shade of moist forests.

Systematics and botanical history

Hapalorchis is classified within the tribe Cranichideae in the subtribe Spiranthinae. The genus was established by Rudolf Schlechter 1919. The name derives from the Greek ἁπαλός hapalos, " delicate, soft ," and refers to the general appearance of the plants. As type species he chose Hapalorchis cheirostyloides, as second nature, he described Hapalorchis tenuis (both species are now considered to be synonymous with Hapalorchis lineatus ). Other types described Schlechter 1920.

The genus Hapalorchis been described by some authors as very similar to Cyclopogon, the actual relationships are unclear.

The species of the genus Hapalorchis:

• Hapalorchis cymbirostris Szlach.
• Hapalorchis lindleyanus Garay
• Hapalorchis lineatus ( Lindl. ) Schltr.
• Hapalorchis longirostris Schltr.
• Hapalorchis panduratus Szlach.
• Hapalorchis pumilus ( C.Schweinf. ) Garay
• Hapalorchis stellaris Szlach.
• Hapalorchis trilobatus Schltr.

Documents

The information in this article come from mainly:

• Leslie A. Garay: 225 (1). Orchidaceae ( Cypripedioideae, Orchidoideae and Neottioideae ). In: Gunnar Harling, Benkt Sparre (eds.): Flora of Ecuador. 9, 1978, ISSN 0347-8742, pp. 245-246.
• Leslie A. Garay: A generic revision of the Spiranthinae. In: Botanical Museum Leaflets of Harvard University. 28, No. 4, 1982, p 326
• Alec M. Pridgeon, Phillip Cribb, Mark W. Chase and Finn Rasmussen ( ed.): Genera Orchidacearum. Orchidoideae (Part 2). Vanilloideae. 3/2, Oxford University Press, New York and Oxford 2003, ISBN 0-19-850711-9, pp. 210-212.

Furthermore, quoting:

Postgraduate

• List of Orchid Genera

• Herbarexemplar of Hapalorchis lineatus

• Orchids
• Orchidaceae