Specklinia barbelifera Karremans, Salguero & Bogarín, 2020

Karremans, Adam, Salguero, Grettel, Bogarín, Diego, Oses, Lizbeth & Cedeño-Fonseca, Marco, 2020, Illustrations and studies in Neotropical Orchidaceae: the Specklinia brighamii group (Pleurothallidinae) in Costa Rica, Phytotaxa 447 (1), pp. 16-30 : 20-23

3. Specklinia barbelifera Karremans, Salguero & Bogarín , sp. nov. ( Fig. 3 )

Type:— COSTA RICA. Cartago-Limón: Turrialba y Siquirres, Pacuarito-Tayutic, Parque Nacional Barbilla, sendero hacia el Río Dantas (Venado), 9°58’27.35”N 83°27’00.33”W, 382 m, bosque pluvial premontano, epífitas en bosque primario y secundario, 25 mayo 2012, Karremans et al. 5481 (holotype: JBL-spirit).

Specklinia barbelifera resembles S. acrisepala but differs in the inflorescence subequal to the leaf (vs. significantly surpassing the leaves), the shorter narrower leaves (up to 5.3 × 0.5 cm vs. 10.0 × 1.1 cm), pedicels much shorter than sepals (vs. pedicels longer than sepals), shorter sepals (dorsal sepal 6 mm vs. 9 mm), the oblong-elliptic dorsal sepal (vs. lanceolate), and narrowly obovate petals (vs. sub-rhombic).

Epiphytic, caespitose, erect herbs, to 6.5 cm tall including the inflorescence. Roots flexuous, to 0.5 mm in diameter. Rhizome extremely abbreviated. Ramicauls erect, 3–5 mm tall, enclosed by tubular sheaths. Leaves narrowly elliptical to narrowly oblanceolate, conduplicate, acute, slightly oblique, emarginate, with a short apicule, 3.8–5.3 × 0.4–0.5 cm, the base narrowing to a distinct petiole, 4–5 mm long. Inflorescence racemose, distichous, glabrous, erect, successively single-flowered, 3.7–8.0 cm long, longer than the leaves, born by a filiform peduncle, 3.2–5.1 cm long, the rachis congested, sub-fasciculate. Floral bracts ovate, acute to acuminate, conduplicate, tubular, up to 3.0 mm long. Pedicels cylindric, to 2.5–3.0 mm long, persistent, green, turning papery with age. Ovary purple, cylindric, 1.6 mm long. Flowers yellow conspicuously stripped and suffused with dark purple, sepals yellowish green with crimson veins, heavily suffused with dark purple above the middle, petal fully purple, lip yellow, purple on the apical third and on the keels, marginal trichomes whitish, column yellowish heavily suffused with purple. Dorsal sepal oblong-elliptic, acute, margins minutely glandular, 6.0 × 2.0– 2.1 mm. Lateral sepals connate to almost to the apex, forming an oblong synsepal, acute, 5.2–5.3 × 2.5–2.6 mm. Petals oblique, narrowly obovate, shortly acuminate, 2.9–3.0 × 1.0– 1.1 mm. Lip oblong, basally unguiculate, hinged to the column foot, cellular-glandular, the apex denticulate, with a pair of small, acute marginal angles at the basal third, and a pair of denticulate-spiculate calli on the apical third, the disc transversely cellular-rugose, the base truncate with a pair of minute lobules, 2.8 × 0.9–1.0 mm. Column cylindrical, arcuate, to 3.4–3.5 mm long, longitudinally winged, apex erose, with a 2.0 mm long column foot at the base. Anther cap incumbent, cucullate, stigma ventral. Pollinia two, ovoid, flattened and hooked towards the base, lacking accessory structures.

Distribution:— Known only from the Caribbean lowlands of Costa Rica.

Habitat and ecology:— Epiphytic in premontane wet forest, secondary and primary vegetation, 210–382 m elevation.

Phenology:— Flowering in September.

Etymology:— From the Latin barbelifer, “barbel bearing”, referring to the conspicuous whitish trichomes on the apical margin of the lip contrasting with the dark purple lip.

Material examined:— COSTA RICA. Cartago: Chitaría, June 1981, cultivated 16 Oct 1981, Gómez 7338 ( SEL; illustration in Luer 2006, Fig. 156). Cartago-Limón: Turrialba y Siquirres, Pacuarito-Tayutic, Parque Nacional Barbilla, sendero hacia el Río Dantas (Venado), 9°58’27.35”N 83°27’00.33”W, 382 m, bosque pluvial premontano, epífitas en bosque primario y secundario, 25 May 2012, Karremans et al. 5485 (JBL-spirit) ; same locality and date, Bogarín et al. 9669, (JBL-spirit). Limón: Siquirres, Estación Biológica Río Dantas , 210 m, 9°59’56”N 83°26’07”W, 18 June 1995, Blanco et al. 319 ( USJ) .

Notes:— Specklinia barbelifera has been confused with S. acrisepala but can be easily distinguished by the significantly smaller plants with an inflorescence that is subequal to the leaf (vs. significantly surpassing the leaves), shorter, narrower leaves (up to 5.3 × 0.5 cm vs. 10.0 × 1.1 cm), pedicels much shorter than sepals (vs. pedicels longer than sepals), smaller sepals (dorsal sepal 6 mm vs. 9 mm), oblong-elliptic dorsal sepal (vs. lanceolate) and narrowly obovate petals (vs. sub-rhombic). Specklinia acrisepala is found only on the Pacific watershed of the Cordillera de Talamanca, whereas the new species is found exclusively on the Caribbean lowlands. The sympatric S. tirimbina has an elongate inflorescence twice the leaf length (versus inflorescence subequal to leaves), yellowish flowers with purple spots (vs. conspicuously striped and suffused with dark purple) and lip as long as the column (vs. longer than the column).

Figures

FIGURE 3. Specklinia barbelifera Karremans, Salguero & Bogarín. A. Habit. B. Flower. Dissected perianth. D. Column and lip, lateral view. E. Lip. F. Column lateral and ventral views. F. Anther cap and pollinarium. Lankester Composite Dissection Plate (LCDP) by G. Salguero based on Karremans 5481.