Species Information - Hippeophyllum biakenae

Hippeophyllum biakenae J.J.Sm., Nova Guinea 14 (1929) 366, pl. 50, 25

Type: Gibbs 6283; Feuilletau de Bruyn 386

Synonyms:

Rhizome elongated, creeping, branched, terete, with long internodes; sheaths tubular, keeled, much shorter than the internodes. Stems short, 2-6 cm apart, 5-8-leaved. Leaves erect-patent, laterally compressed, linear, more or less falcate, acute, the middle one largest, when dried to 6.5-8.5 cm long, 0.3-0.4 cm wide; sheaths tubular, laterally compressed, in front membranous, soon becoming torn and with irregular membranous margins, to 1 cm long. Inflorescence erect, many-flowered, peduncle 1.5-1.75 cm long, with a few appressed bract-like scales, rachis angular, glabrous, 8-11 cm long. Floral bracts appressed to the pedicel, ovate, obtuse, concave, finely erose-ciliolate, dorsally keeled, 0.18-0.2 cm long, 0.13 cm wide. Flowers 0.34 cm wide. Median sepal oblong, subobtuse, convex, 1-nerved, 0.18 cm long, 0.08 cm wide. Lateral sepals reflexed, obliquely oblong, subobtuse, convex, 1-nerved, 0.17 cm long, 0.07 cm wide. Petals broadly patent, linear, obtuse, convex, 1-nerved, 0.17 cm long, 0.04 cm wide. Lip porrect, making an acute angle with the column, 3-lobed, concave, convex below, 3-nerved, at the base with two calli separated by a concavity, when not flattened 0.13 cm long, when flattened in outline 5-angular, 0.17 cm long, to the tips of the lateral lobes slightly more than 0.1 cm long; lateral lobes erect, porrect, short, slightly surpassing the column, rounded, convex, with the basal part of the lip forming a subquadrate hypochile which is somewhat dilated towards the lateral lobes and at the base on either side orbicular, narrowed; mid-lobe recurved, broadly ovate-triangular, at the base on either side rounded, somewhat triangular-acuminate, obtuse, somewhat narrower than the hypochile, almost 0.07 cm long, 0.08 cm wide. Column straight, somewhat dorsally compressed, dorsally convex, without anther 0.1 cm long, clinandrium obliquely concave, auricles triangular, concave. Anther cucullate, ovate-elliptic, apex rounded, at the base truncate, 0.05 cm long, basal part quadrate with subparallel thecae, as long as the filament, slightly narrower, semiovate. Rostellum triangular, obtuse, shorter than the auricles. Stigma small. Ovary and pedicel in apical part puberulous-papillose, 0.26 cm long. (After Smith, 1929)

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