''Acrorchis'' is a

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispe ...

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...

from the orchid family (

Orchidaceae Orchids are plants that belong to the family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant. Along with the Asteraceae, they are one of the two largest families of flowering ...

), subfamily

Epidendroideae Epidendroideae is a subfamily of plants in the orchid family, Orchidaceae. Epidendroideae is larger than all the other orchid subfamilies together, comprising more than 15,000 species in 576 genera. Most epidendroid orchids are tropical epiphytes ...

, tribe Epidendreae, subtribe

Laeliinae Laeliinae is a Neotropical subtribe including 40 orchid genera, such as '' Brassavola'', ''Laelia'' and ''Cattleya''. The genus ''Epidendrum'' is the largest within this subtribe, containing about 1500 species. This is followed by the genus ''En ...

. The only species, ''Acrorchis roseola'', is an

epiphytic An epiphyte is an organism that grows on the surface of a plant and derives its moisture and nutrients from the air, rain, water (in marine environments) or from debris accumulating around it. The plants on which epiphytes grow are called phoroph ...

orchid that occurs in Costa Rica and

Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Co ...

at heights between 900 and 2,500 m. It is clump-forming, magenta orchid, reaching a height of 15 cm. The

sepal A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 The term ''sepalum'' was coine ...

s and petals of its small

flower A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechani ...

s have distinct lengths and shapes. The base of the

lip The lips are the visible body part at the mouth of many animals, including humans. Lips are soft, movable, and serve as the opening for food intake and in the articulation of sound and speech. Human lips are a tactile sensory organ, and can be ...

has a white color on the margins.Dressler, Robert Louis. 1990. ''Acrorchis'', a new genus from the mountains of Panama and Costa Rica Orquídea (Mexico City), n.s. 12(1): 11-17, f. This orchid is very rare in cultivation.

References

External links

photo of herbarium specimen at Missouri Botanical Garden, collected in Panama, holotype of ''Acrorchis roseola''
{{Taxonbar, from1=Q20801, from2=Q15104224 Laeliinae Monotypic Epidendroideae genera Orchids of Costa Rica Orchids of Panama Epiphytic orchids Laeliinae genera