Triphora (orchid)
Triphora trianthophora - drawing from: N.L.Britton & A.Brown: Illustrated flora of the northern states and Canada Vol 1: Panel 562 (1913 )
The genus Triphora from the orchid family (Orchidaceae) consists of 18 species. They appear mainly in tropical America, a kind in eastern North America.
Description
The Triphora species are herbaceous plants, they carry out photosynthesis or feed mykoheterotroph. A rhizome is absent or very short. One or more roots are thickened fleshy and bulbous. Are fibrous roots that can form nodules in the distance at the base of the shoot. The shoot is slender and wears little, distributed on the shoot leaves. The leaves are arranged in two rows, the leaf blade is lanceolate to oval, the leaf base includes the shoot. Often the leaves are greatly reduced, the leaf color is a reddish green. The leaves are crinkled along several veins ( Plikat ) or smooth and rolled in the bud ( convolut ). The leaf margin serrate smooth or easy.
The specimens from a population often bloom at exactly the same. The individual flower lasts for just a day, the flowers of the inflorescence bloom in succession on. The inflorescence contains from one to ten flowers that - are 'upside down or not - depending on the type. The bracts are similar to the uppermost leaves. The ovary is narrow spindle-shaped. The petals are not fused together, they are colored white to pink. The sepals and lateral petals are similar, lanceolate. The dorsal sepal is concave up hood -shaped curved, the lateral sepals are asymmetrical and slightly curved sickle-shaped. The lip is narrowed wedge-shaped at the base, the leaf blade is three-lobed. On the leaf surface, there are three longitudinal, yellow or pink colored bars. The column is white or light green, straight and slightly clavate. The scar is simple or bilobed. The stamen contains two pollinia, which are of mealy consistency. The capsule fruit is oval to inversely egg-shaped, with six longitudinal strips.
Dissemination
The species of the genus Triphora are widespread in tropical South and Central America. Triphora triantophora has a distribution area further north in eastern North America. There are colonized at altitudes of 3000 meters usually moist forests. The spread may have occurred from South America to the north.
Systematics and botanical history
The genus Triphora was erected in 1818 by Thomas Nuttall. The name Triphora is composed of the Greek words τρί tri-, "three", and φορέειν Sophora, "carry", together; he could refer to the number of flowers in an inflorescence or on the number of strips on the lip.
The assignment to tribe Triphoreae comes from Dressler. He gave as next of kin to the genera Monophyllorchis and Psilochilus. This classification was also confirmed by recent DNA studies, the phylogenetic relationships within the Triphoreae are as follows:
Triphora
Psilochilus
Monophyllorchis
There are 19 valid species are known:
- Triphora amazonica Schltr.
- Triphora carnosula ( Rchb.f. ) Schltr.
- Triphora craigheadii Luer
- Triphora debilis ( Schltr. ) Schltr.
- Triphora duckei Schltr.
- Triphora foldatsii Carnevali
- Triphora gentianoides ( Sw. ) Nutt. ex Ames & Schltr.
- Triphora hassleriana ( Cogn. ex Chodat & Hassl. ) Schltr.
- Triphora heringeri Pabst
- Triphora miserrima ( Cogn. ) Acuña
- Triphora nitida ( Schltr. ) Schltr.
- Triphora pusilla ( Rchb.f. & hot. ) Schltr.
- Triphora ravenii ( L.O.Williams ) Garay
- Triphora santamariensis Portalet
- Triphora surinamensis ( Lindl. ex Benth. ) Britton
- Triphora trianthophora ( Sw. ) Rydb.
- Triphora uniflora AWCFerreira, Baptista & Pansarin.
- Triphora wagneri Schltr.
- Triphora yucatanensis Ames