Prescottia lojana Dodson, Orquideologia

Azevedo, Cecília Oliveira De, Berg, Cássio Van Den & Barros, Fábio De, 2014, A revision of Prescottia (Orchidaceae: Orchidoideae, Cranichideae), Phytotaxa 178 (4), pp. 233-286 : 257-259

7. Prescottia lojana Dodson, Orquideologia 20: 108. 1996. [ Jørgensen & León-Yánez 1999]. Type:— ECUADOR. Zamora-Chinchipe: Yangana to Valladolid. Hirtz, Luer & Flores 2298 ( holotype MO!). Fig. 21 .

Terrestrial herbs. Leaves 2–3, rosulate, petiolate; petiole (4.0–)8.5–10.0 cm long; blade green with a hyaline-white margin (4.5)7.5–10.0 × (2.5–) 4.3–5.2 cm, ovate, apex acute, base rounded, margin serrulate. Inflorescence 25–60- flowered; peduncle red, 19.0–31.0 × 0.5 cm; peduncle bracts 5–7, 17.0–45.0 × 6.0–10.0 mm, ovate, apex acute; rachis 10.0–15.0 × 1.0– 1.5 cm. Flower bracts deep green, 5.8–10.0 × 2.0–3.0 mm, ovate, apex acuminate; flowers erect; dorsal sepal strongly revolute, 2.0–2.5 × 1.5–2.0 mm, ovate to triangular, apex obtuse; lateral sepals strongly revolute, 3.0–3.5 × 1.5–2.0 mm, oblong, apex obtuse; petals strongly revolute, 2.5–3.0 × 0.5–0.7 mm, oblong, apex obtuse; lip (3.7–)5.0–6.6 × 1.8–2.2 mm, inner surface glabrous. Column 1.8–3.0 mm long.

Distribution:— Ecuador and Venezuela ( Fig. 14 ).

Selected Specimens Examined:— ECUADOR. Loja: Parque Nacional Podocarpus, Cerro Toledo , 01 December 1988, Madsen 75723 ( AAU) . VENEZUELA. Bolivar: Kekenan Tepui , summit, 11 April 1988, Liesner 23114 ( MO) .

Habitat:— Prescottia lojana grows on eroded sandstone “mesas” with deep crevices and large rock formations, mostly in shrub islands or open forest, 3,000–3,700 m.

Conservation Status:— Data deficient.

Etymology:— Named for the Ecuadorian region of Loja ( Dodson 1996).

Notes:— Prescottia lojana can be distinguished by its lip with a prominent midvein. It was not available for molecular studies but appears on morphological grounds to be related to P. carnosa , P. ecuadorensis and P. stachyodes , which also have petiolate leaves, greenish flowers and glabrous inner lip surfaces. Specimens of Orchidaceae cited at the Ecuadorian Herbarium Río Palenque Science Center (RPSC) have been transferred to MO.

Figures

FIGURE 14. Distribution of Prescottia carnosa, P. ecuadorensis and P. lojana.

FIGURE 21. Prescottia lojana. A. Habit. B,C. Flower. B. Front view. C. Lateral view. D. Floral bract. E. Perianth parts, clockwise from top: lip, lateral sepal, petal, dorsal sepal. F,G. Column. F. Ventral view. G. Dorsal view (Holst 3522).