Genus Appendicula
Appendicula Blume, Bijdr. (1825) 297
Synonyms:
- Genus Chilopogon Schltr., Repert. Spec. Nov. Regni Veg. Beih. 1 (1912) 332. Type species : not designated.
- Genus Conchochilus Hassk. in Hoev. & De Vriese, Tijdschr. 9 (1842) 146
- Genus Cyphochilus Schltr., Repert. Spec. Nov. Regni Veg. Beih. 1 (1912) 358. Type species : not designated.
- Genus Lobogyne Schltr., Mém. Herb. Boissier 21 (1900) 85. Type species: Lobogyne bracteosa Schltr.
- Genus Metachilum Lindl., Gen. Sp. Orchid. Pl. (1830) 74. Type species: Metachilum cyathiforme Lindl.
- Genus Scoliochilus Rchb.f., Xenia Orchid. 2 (1872) 118. Type species:not designated.
Sympodial epiphytic or occasionally terrestrial plants without or with very short rhizomes. Stem slender, elongated, sometimes branching, not or slightly fleshy, with many closely spaced leaves in two rows. Leaves sheathing at the base, glabrous, deciduous, duplicate, thin-textured or sometimes more fleshy. Inflorescence lateral or terminal, a raceme, a panicle or carrying a single flower. Flowers small to very small, resupinate. Lateral sepals more or less connate, forming a mentum. Petals free, about as long as and often fairly similar to the dorsal sepal. Lip without spur, not mobile, often with a backwards projecting appendage. Column-foot present. Pollinia 6, solid, seemingly with two caudicles, but these are in fact modified, sterile pollinia; stipe absent, viscidium present.
Tropical continental Asia, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, Pacific islands, east to Tonga. About 100 species; in New Guinea c. 58 species and 9 varieties.
Usually on tree trunks and thick branches in lowland and montane forest, often growing in shady positions.
- Kores, P. 1989. A precursory study of Fijian orchids. Allertonia 5: 1-222.
- Ormerod, P. Checklist of Papuasian Orchids (2017) 133.
- Subfamily Epidendroideae
- Tribe Podochileae
- Subtribe Podochilinae
- Genus Appendicula
- Kores, P. 1989. A precursory study of Fijian orchids. Allertonia 5: 1-222.
A genus with regular distichous foliage evenly distributed along slender stems. The very inconspicuous flowers have a prominent 'chin' (mentum), and (unique among Asian orchids) 6 pollinia.The lip has a more or less distinct lobe-like basal appendage, while the column has a pointed, bidentate rostellum.
Schlechter (Schlechter, 1911-1914) proposed a subdivision into sections based on inflorescence characters.
KEY TO THE SECTIONS OF GENUS APPENDICULA IN NEW GUINEA
1a. Inflorescences 1-flowered, terminal on the stem == Appendicula section Oligodesme
1b. Inflorescences several- to many-flowered, terminal or lateral on the stem or both == 2
2a. Inflorescences very short == Appendicula section Appendicula
2a. Inflorescences more or less elongated == 3
3a. Peduncle long, enveloped in scale-leaves. -- Inflorescences terminal or lateral == Appendicula section Pododesme
3b. Peduncle short, rachis elongated -- Inflorescences mainly terminal == 4
4a. Rostellum broad, deeply emarginate == Appendicula section Cyphochilus
4b. Rostellum not broad and deeply emarginate == 5
5a. Inflorescence more or less lax, rachis more or less elongated, with relatively long internodes and relatively short bracts -- Inflorescences mainly terminal == Appendicula section Chaunodesme
5b. Inflorescence condensed, rachis short, with short internodes and long distichous bracts. Lip without basal appendage -- Inflorescences terminal == Appendicula section Chilopogon
Genus Appendicula contains 5 sections, all sections occur in New Guinea:
Genus Appendicula section Appendicula
Genus Appendicula section Cyphochilus
Genus Appendicula section Pododesme
Genus Appendicula section Pseudappendicula
Genus Appendicula section Stenodesme
To what extent the accepted sections are monophyletic groups is another matter that has to await detailed DNA analyses, which are probably not forthcoming any time soon.
Regrettably, Hallé in 1977 chose to typify the genus Appendicula with A. alba Blume, a member of Schlechter's section Chaunodesme, rather than with A. reflexa, which is the best-known representative of Schlechter's Eu-Appendicula. If accepted, this typification would imply that sect. Chaunodesme would have to be called sect. Appendicula, while sect. Eu-Appendicula would require a new name. Indeed, this was proposed by Kores (1989: 120), who renamed the latter to sect. Stenodesme. We (Schuiteman & de Vogel 2006) argued that Hallé's typification was apparently done in ignorance of Schlechter's sectional division and therefore is to be rejected as being more or less automatic (i.e. by randomly choosing one of the species originally included in Appendicula by Blume). Instead we proposed to typify the genus Appendicula with A. reflexa Blume so that with the minor modification of the name Eu-Appendicula to Appendicula Schlechter's names can still be used. Ormerod (2017) accepted Kores' decision, while we temporarily remain with the argumentation we proposed in 2006, which is represented here on this website, awaiting the decision by a future reviewer of the genus.
Genus Appendicula contains c. 106 species, in New Guinea 60 species and 9 varieties:
Appendicula aberrans
Appendicula anemophila
Appendicula ancosiphila
Appendicula anomala
Appendicula biloba
Appendicula biloba var. angustifolia
Appendicula biumbonata
Appendicula biumbonata var. exappendiculata
Appendicula bracteata
Appendicula brassii
Appendicula calcicola
Appendicula callifera
Appendicula carinifera
Appendicula cleistogama
Appendicula collina
Appendicula concava
Appendicula cyphochiloides
Appendicula dendrobioides
Appendicula dichaeoides
Appendicula disticha
Appendicula djamuensis
Appendicula djamuensis var. isoglossa
Appendicula fallax
Appendicula fasciculata
Appendicula fergussoniana
Appendicula flaccida
Appendicula flaccida var. lobogyne
Appendicula furfuracea
Appendicula gjellerupii
Appendicula goodenoughiana
Appendicula grandifolia
Appendicula hexadens
Appendicula hooglandii
Appendicula humilis
Appendicula isoglossa
Appendicula kaniensis
Appendicula lamprophylla
Appendicula latifolia
Appendicula lutea
Appendicula maneauensis
Appendicula matapensis
Appendicula montana
Appendicula neohibernica
Appendicula nivea
Appendicula oblonga
Appendicula oxysepala
Appendicula oxysepala var. longicalcarata
Appendicula palustris
Appendicula palustris f. angusta
Appendicula parvifolia
Appendicula patentissima
Appendicula pendula
Appendicula pendula var. chalmersiana
Appendicula penicillata
Appendicula polyphylla
Appendicula polystachya
Appendicula pseudopendula
Appendicula pseudopendula var. cryptostigma
Appendicula reflexa
Appendicula reflexa var. neopommeranica
Appendicula rivularis
Appendicula rostrata
Appendicula scissosaccus
Appendicula sepikana
Appendicula steffensiana
Appendicula tenuispica
Appendicula topensabe
Appendicula torricelliana
Appendicula vanimoensis
Appendicula wariana
Appendicula werneri
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Genus Appendicula
Appendicula biumbonata aff., habit, photo P. O'Byrne, based on O'Byrne A160
Genus Appendicula
Appendicula oxysepala aff., habit, photo P. O'Byrne, based on O'Byrne C410
Genus Appendicula
Appendicula pendula Blume var. chalmersiana (F.Muell.) J.J.Sm., stem with inflorescence, photo E.F. de Vogel, from Leiden cult. 2003????
Genus Appendicula
Appendicula pendula Blume var. chalmersiana (F.Muell.) J.J.Sm., flower, front view, photo E.F. de Vogel, from Leiden cult. 2003????
Genus Appendicula
Appendicula pendula Blume var. chalmersiana (F.Muell.) J.J.Sm., flower, lateral view, photo E.F. de Vogel, from Leiden cult. 2003????
Genus Appendicula
Appendicula polystachya (Schltr.) Schltr., inflorescence, photo E.F. de Vogel
Genus Appendicula
Appendicula reflexa Blume, photo E.F. de Vogel, from Leiden cult. 20030789
Genus Appendicula
Appendicula reflexa Blume, photo E.F. de Vogel, from Leiden cult. 20030789
Genus Appendicula
Appendicula sp. sect. Chaunodesme, inflorescence, photo W. Harris, based on Harris 1888
Genus Appendicula
Appendicula oxysepala (Schltr.) J.J.Sm., drawing N.H.S. Howcroft 247, based on O'Byrne 410