Monographs Details:
Authority:

Ackerman, James D. 1995. An orchid flora of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 73: 1-203.
Family:

Orchidaceae
Description:

Species Description - Plants erect, terrestrial, to 1 m tall. Roots several to many, glabrous to villous, 1-2 mm diam. Stems covered by leaf sheaths, glabrous, to 8 mm diam. Leaves several to many, cauline, spirally arranged, glabrous, becoming bractlike toward raceme; sheaths densely spotted blackish brown; blades elliptic to lanceolate, acute to acuminate, to 9 cm long, 3 cm wide. Inflorescences densely flowered racemes, glabrous, 10-14 cm long; floral bracts ovatelanceolate, shorter than the flowers. Flowers white, resupinate, glabrous. Pedicellate ovary erect, 15-20 mm long. Sepals broadly elliptic, 5-7 mm long, 3-4 mm wide; dorsal sepal erect, concave, forming a hood over the column, lateral sepals spreading. Petals unequally and deeply bifid, 5-6 mm long; the lower lobe reflexed, filiform. Lip deeply trilobed; lateral lobes filiform, reflexed, 7-10 mm long; middle lobe slightly wider, also reflexed, 6-7 mm long; basal spur ca. 15 mm long, decurrent. Column 2-2.5 mm long; stigmas lateral and below the opening of the spur, 1-1.5 mm long and wide, chunks of pollen often visible; pollinia attached to viscidia by caudicles, 2.5-3 mm long. Fruits erect, cylindrical, 1.3-2 cm long.

Discussion:

1. Habenaria monorrhiza (Swartz) Reichenbach f., Ber. Deutsch. Bot. Ges. 3:274. 1885. Orchis monorrhiza Swartz, Nov. Gen. Sp. PL Prodr. 118. 1788. Type. Swartz s.n., from Jamaica (BM, cited in Garay & Sweet, 1974, could not be located; S, E. Christenson, pers. comm.; SBT, T. Zanoni, pers. comm.) Habenaria maculosa Lindley, Gen. Sp. Orchid. PL 309. 1835. Lectotype. Guilding s.n., from St. Vincent (K-L). Phenology & Pollination. Flowering occurs from September through February. The nocturnally fragrant, white flowers may be pollinated by moths. Self-pollination, however, does occur. Within mature buds, chunks of sectile pollinia fall from the anther and adhere to the stigmas. Most flowers develop fruit.
Distribution:

Central America| Ecuador South America| South America| West Indies|