Pleurothallis scaphipetala Luer 1996 SUBGENUS Pleurothallis SECTION Macrophyllae-Fasciculatae Lindl 1859

Photo by © Daniel Jimenez

Common Name or Meaning The Boat-Shaped Petal Pleurothallis [refers to the shape of the petals]

Flower Size .2" [5 mm]

Found in Costa Rica in wet lowland forests elevations of 250 to 550 meters as a mini-miniature sized, hot to warm growing epiphyte with slender, erect, suberect to horizontal ramicauls enveloped by a loose, tubular sheath in the lower half and 1 to 2 others at the base and carrying a single, apical, suberect to horizontal, thickly coriaceous, elliptical, obtuse, broadly cuneate and sessile base leaf that blooms in the spring on an successively single flowered inflorescence arising through a spathe with the peduncle concealed within and carrying thin tubular floral bracts and a resupinate flower

Distinctive in the sepals are only slightly verrucose within as well as a concave lip and petals which are large, wide and deeply concave and more or less enclose the lip and column

Synonyms Acronia scaphipetala (Luer) Luer 2005

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; Manual de Plantas de Costa Rica Vol 3 Hammel, Grayum, Herrera and Zamora 2003; Icones Pleurothallidinarum Vol XXVII Luer 2005 drawing fide as Acronia scaphipetala; AOS Bulletin Vol 76 No 9 2007 photo fide; Orchids of Costa Rica Vol 5 Morales 2009 photo fide; Vanishing Beauty, Native Costa Rican Orchids Vol 2 Lacaena to Pteroglossa Pupulin 2020 photo fide

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