Abstract
Although several proposals for an infrageneric classification of Epidendrum have been proposed, none is congruent with the most recent molecular analysis. One of the known informal groups proposed in the genus, the “Arbuscula group,” is characterized by an upright sympodial habit in which successive new stems emerge internodally from the leaf sheath and a few (2–4) leaves are aggregated at the apex of each stem. Four species from this group have been recorded in Brazil; these could be called the “E. proligerum complex”, which is characterized by an inflated cuniculus, forming a vesicle in the ventral portion of the pedicellate ovary. A fifth species from this group with whitish flowers, herein described as E. niveum, was found in the Atlantic Forest of São Paulo state, Brazil. It is similar to E. proligerum but differs by its thinner stems; whitish flowers; 7–veined sepals; patent petals, that are 5-veined and laterally strongly revolute lip. It is illustrated and its affinities with allied species are discussed.
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Acknowledgments
We thank CNPq, CAPES, INCT-Herbário Virtual de Plantas e Fungos, NSF, and the Beneficia Foundation. The authors thank Regina Carvalho for the line drawing, Scott Heald for his review of the English, and two reviewers for their valuable suggestions.
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Pessoa, E., Miranda, M.R. & Alves, M. A new whitish flowered Epidendrum (Laeliinae-Orchidaceae) from the Atlantic Forest of southeastern Brazil. Brittonia 68, 115–119 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12228-015-9404-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12228-015-9404-2