Liparis aphylla (Malaxideae, Orchidaceae), a new leafless record from Peru.

Alexander Damian,Paul Ormerod

doi:10.3897/phytokeys.61.7420

Abstract

Liparis aphylla G.A.Romero & Garay was previously known only from two herbarium specimens collected in 1945 and 1977 in Ecuador and Colombia, respectively. This little-known species is hereby reported for the first time for Peru. An updated description, line illustration, color photographs and distribution map of Liparis aphylla, as well as an identification key to the Peruvian species of Liparis are provided.

Highlights

Liparis Rich. s.l. is a large cosmopolitan genus of about 480 species, reported in tropical Asia, Malesia, eastern Australia, the Pacific Islands, Madagascar, Africa, subtropical and tropical Americas, temperate Europe, Asia and North America
Because of the scarcity of information about this rare orchid, we provide an updated description and line illustration, we illustrate it with color photos for the first time and we provide additional information regarding its ecology and morphological variation
The distribution of this species, based on herbarium records, appears to be highly disjunct (Figure 3). This extreme patchiness may be an artifact of limited collecting, and we suspect that L. aphylla likely occurs throughout the Andean range, at climatically suitable locations ranging from the Cordillera Oriental/East Andes in Colombia to the northern Andes of Peru

Summary

Introduction

Liparis Rich. s.l. is a large cosmopolitan genus of about 480 species, reported in tropical Asia, Malesia, eastern Australia, the Pacific Islands (including Hawaii and Tahiti), Madagascar, Africa, subtropical and tropical Americas, temperate Europe, Asia and North America. According to a recent molecular phylogenetic study (Cameron 2005), Liparis contains four major clades, two of which include primarily Asiatic-Malesian epiphytic taxa with narrow conduplicate leaves, and the other two consist mostly of terrestrial plants with worldwide distribution and broader, conduplicate to plicate leaves. Schlechter (1921), compiled the first account of Liparis in Peru and reported three species, namely L. crispifolia Rchb.f, L. elegantula Kraenzl, and L. ramosa Poepp. Bracko & Zarucchi (1993) added two unvouchered records, namely L. luerii Dodson [= L. serpens Garay] and L. neuroglossa Rchb.f. to the list of Peruvian taxa (see Ormerod 2012). Taking into account the previous records and four additional Peruvian species described by Ormerod (2012), currently we recognize the following 11 species for this country: L. ecallosa Ormerod, L. elegantula, L. laticuneata, L. nervosa, L. ramosa, L. retusa, L. rusbyi Rolfe, L. schunkei Ormerod, L. serratiloba Ormerod, L. vargasii Ormerod, and L. vexillifera. Because of the scarcity of information about this rare orchid, we provide an updated description and line illustration, we illustrate it with color photos for the first time and we provide additional information regarding its ecology and morphological variation

Materials and methods

Discussion