Oeceoclades maculata

Oeceoclades maculata
Oeceoclades maculata
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
(unranked): Angiosperms
(unranked): Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Orchidaceae
Subfamily: Epidendroideae
Tribe: Cymbidieae
Subtribe: Eulophiinae
Genus: Oeceoclades
Species: O. maculata
Binomial name
Oeceoclades maculata
(Lindl.) Lindl.
Synonyms[1]
  • Angraecum maculatum Lindl.
  • Limodorum maculatum (Lindl.) G.Lodd.
  • Aerobion maculatum (Lindl.) Spreng.
  • Eulophia maculata (Lindl.) Rchb.f.
  • Eulophidium maculatum (Lindl.) Pfitzer
  • Graphorkis maculata (Lindl.) Kuntze

Oeceoclades maculata, sometimes known as the monk orchid or African spotted orchid, is a terrestrial orchid species in the genus Oeceoclades that is native to tropical Africa and now naturalized in South and Central America, the Caribbean, and Florida in North America.[1] It was first described by the English botanist John Lindley as Angraecum maculatum in 1821 based on a specimen collected from South America. Lindley later revised his original placement and moved the species to the genus Oeceoclades in 1833.[1]

Group of Oeceoclades maculata with infructescences

Oeceoclades maculata was first found naturalized outside of Africa in Brazil in 1829. It was later found throughout the neotropics and specifically in Puerto Rico in the mid-1960s and in Florida in the early 1970s. It is considered to be one of the most successful invasive orchids.[2]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 WCSP 2014. World Checklist of selected plant families. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published on the internet. Accessed: 2014-8-11.
  2. ↑ Stern, W.L. 1988. The long-distance dispersal of Oeceoclades maculata. American Orchid Society Bulletin, 57(9): 960-971.

External links