Amesiella minor is the smallest species of the genus Amesiella. These miniature epiphytic orchids are native to the Philippines.[1][2][3]

Amesiella minor
Flower of Amesiella minor
Three Amesiella minor specimens on a white background with a scale bar
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Orchidaceae
Subfamily: Epidendroideae
Genus: Amesiella
Species:
A. minor
Binomial name
Amesiella minor
Distribution of Amesiella minor

Ecology and habitat

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This species grows on the island of Luzon at heights of 1200 m a.s.l.[4][5]

Discovery

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It was described by the German botanist Karlheinz Senghas in 1999.[4]

Description

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These miniature, cool-growing, monopodial herbs form small, leathery leaves.[5][6] Amesiella has white flowers with long spurs.[7] The morphology of the spur suggests moth pollination.[8] The flowers have two gold coloured, vertical stripes on the lateral lobes of the labellum, which is similar to Amesiella philippinensis. The flowers of Amesiella minor are considerably smaller, which is also referred to in the specific epithet "minor", which means "small" in Latin.[9] Up to 5 flowers[5] with short spurs are formed on 7 cm[5] long racemes.

References

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  1. ^ "Amesiella minor Senghas | Plants of the World Online | Kew Science". Plants of the World Online.
  2. ^ "Amesiella minor Senghas - Encyclopedia of Life". eol.org.
  3. ^ Agoo, E. M. G. (2007). Status of orchid taxonomy research in the Philippines. Philippine Journal of Systematic Biology, 1(1), 73-98.
  4. ^ a b "Amesiella minor | International Plant Names Index". www.ipni.org.
  5. ^ a b c d IOSPE PHOTOS. (n.d.). Retrieved October 2, 2022, from http://www.orchidspecies.com/amesminor.htm
  6. ^ Teoh E.S. (2021) Amesiella Schltr. ex Garay. In: Orchid Species from Himalaya and Southeast Asia Vol. 1 (A - E). Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-58872-4_9
  7. ^ Eur. J. Entomol. 112(2): 393–397, 2015 doi: 10.14411/eje.2015.031 ISSN 1210-5759 (print), 1802-8829 (online)
  8. ^ Genera Orchidacearum Volume 6: Epidendroideae (Part 3) Alec M. Pridgeon / Phillip J. Cribb / Mark W. Chase / Finn N. Rasmussen 2014 OUP Oxford ISBN 978-0-19-100389-9
  9. ^ minor- Latein-Deutsch Übersetzung im Latein-Wörterbuch von Navigium. (n.d.). Retrieved October 2, 2022, from https://www.navigium.de/latein-woerterbuch/minor?nr=null