Phalaenopsis equestris
Phalaenopsis equestris is found throughout the Philippines
and is also recorded from some of the southern islands of Taiwan. This species is the most variable in its coloration, with
numerous forms and varieties having been named over the
years. The labellum is the part of the flower where the greatest
color variation occurs. It is probably the most commonly seen
species throughout the provinces of the Philippines.
Johannes C. Schauer (1813-1848) first named this species in
1843 as Stauroglottis equestris. Then Heinrich G. Reichenbach
(1824-1889) transferred it to Phalaenopsis in the journal Linnaea, 1850. The meaning of the specific epithet as used here
is obscure although Equestris is thought to be the mythical
surname of Roman goddess Venus. The typically seen flower
of Phalaenopsis equestris usually has white or pale pink sepals
and petals with a deeper pink blush centrally. The labellum
can be either solid red or deep pink, and the central callus is
either white or yellow, speckled with brown spots. A number
of the color forms have been recognized both botanically and
horticulturally.
In his monograph on the genus Phalaenopsis, the late Eric
Christenson recognized the following color forms, because of
their horticultural importance in hybridizing ventures:
Phalaenopsis equestris fma. alba (Hort.) E.A. Christenson,
which is the albino form of the species, with pure white
blooms; Phalaenopsis equestris fma. aurea (Hort.) E.A. Christenson, has white sepals and petals, with a bright yellow labellum; and Phalaenopsis equestris var. rosea Valmayor and Tiu,
is the variety with evenly pink colored sepals and petals and a
purplish labellum.
A further color form was described by the German taxonomist Olaf Gruss, in 2001 as Phalaenopsis equestris fma. cyanochila O. Gruss, which has flowers with white sepals and petals
and a bluish labellum.
In 1881, Heinrich G. Reichenbach recognized two further
varieties. The first was variety leucaspis, which has a white callus and the second was variety leucotanthe which has a deep
orange callus.
There are a number of other color variations in this species,
but they do not merit recognition at any level, other than horticultural. The variation in the coloration of the callus in the
midlobe of the labellum and the labellum itself are well worth
noting.
Phalaenopsis mariae
Phalaenopsis mariae is found throughout the island of Mindanao, and the islands that make up the Sulu archipelago in
the south of the Philippines. It is also known from Kalimantan
area in Borneo.
Frederick Burbidge (1847-1905) first mentioned this species
in his travelogue, The Gardens of the Sun (pg. 343), in 1880.
But, was formally named by Robert Warner (1815-1896) and
Benjamin S. Williams (1824-1890) in volume 3 of the Orchid
Album, 1883. The specific epithet honors Marie, the wife of
Frederick Burbidge.
Phalaenopsis | First Quarter | Volume 24 | 2014
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