Aphelandra straminea Leonard

Aphelandra straminea Leonard

Aphelandra straminea Leonard, Contrib. U.S. Nat. Herb. 31: 250. 1953.

Aphelandra hodgei Leonard, Contrib. U.S. Nat. Herb. 31:262. 1953.

Aphelandra longispica Leonard. Contrib. U.S. Nat. Herb. 31: 265. 1953.

Suffrutescent herb to 2 m high; stems terete, strigillose to glabrate; leaf blades elliptic to oblong or broadly oblanceolate, 20–30 cm long, 7–11.5 cm wide, or the lowermost smaller, acuminate at apex (the tip itself blunt), narrowed at base and decurrent on the petiole, submembranaceous, entire or undulate, the upper surface drying olive, nitid, glabrous, the costa and lateral veins (10–12 pairs) flat or slightly raised, moderately conspicuous, the lower surface drying a slightly lighter shade than the upper, sparingly strigillose, the costa and lateral veins raised and conspicuous, the veinlets coarsely but inconspicuously reticulate; petioles (unwinged portion) 3–9 cm long, glabrous to sparingly strigillose, the channel shallow; spikes 1 or several, terminal, subsessile, 13–30 cm long and 12–15 mm broad, quadrangular, the rachis whitecottony-tomentose; bracts decussate, closely imbricate, entire, rhombic-ovate, 8–10 mm long, about 7 mm wide, acute to subacuminate (the tip itself rounded), coriaceous, the margins subscarious, ciliolate near base of bract, the costa prominent, inconspicuously excurrent at tip, the lateral nerves conspicuous except on the broad scarious margins, both surfaces glabrous, the ocelli represented by dull alveolate oval areas about 1.5 mm long and 1 mm wide; bractlets lanceolate, 8–12 mm long and 2–3 mm wide, carinate, the keel densely white, silky, the margins subglabrous, ciliolate, sometimes bearing near the base an ascending, subhyaline tooth about 1 mm long; calyx 0.9–1.15 cm long, the posterior segment oblong-ovate, 4 mm wide, the anterior pair lanceolate, 3 mm wide, the lateral pair more narrowly lanceolate, 2 mm wide, all striate-nerved, the posterior segment sparingly and minutely pubescent, subacute to obtuse at apex, the other segments glabrous and minutely apiculate; corolla straw-color, tinged with pink to red, densely papillose, slightly curved, about 5 cm long, the tube about 5 mm broad near base, narrowed at tip of ovary to 3 mm, thence gradually expanded to about 7 mm at mouth, the upper lip erect, ovate, 13–17 mm long and 7–10 mm wide, acute, the 2 apical lobes narrowly triangular, the middle lobe of the lower lip spreading, ovate, 15–17 mm long, 6–8 mm wide, acute and recurved at apex, the lateral lobes partly adnate to the upper lip, their free portions 1–2 mm long and 1 mm wide, rounded; stamens reaching the tip of the upper lip; anthers 5–6 mm long and 1 mm broad, their basal lobe muticous; capsule oblong, 14–15 mm long and 4 mm in diameter, blunt at tip, glabrous, nitid, puncticulate toward base; seeds brown, flat, 4 mm long and 3 mm broad, sparingly papillose.

TYPE.—O. Haught 1750 (holotype US, isotype NY), Colombia, Santander, in swampy forest at Puerto Araujo on the Río Carare, vicinity of Puerto Berrio, 100–700 m alt, 6 Jun 1935.

DISTRIBUTION.—Andean Colombia, in the departments of Santander, Cundinamarca, and Tolima at elevations between 100 and 900 meters. COLOMBIA. SANTANDER: Forest along the Río Carare, E of Puerto Berrio. 300–400 m alt, 28 Sep 1945, Hodge 6513 (GH, holotype of A. hodgei Leonard). CUNDINAMARCA: Along the Quebrada Cabaña, Hacienda El Cucharo, between Tocaima and Pubenza, 380–600 m alt, 8 May 1944, Killip, Dugand, & Jaramillo 38346 (US, holotype of A. longispica Leonard). TOLIMA: Near Mariquita, along the Río Magdalena, 1824, Rivero s.n. (P); 4 km W of Mariquita, 550 m alt, 23 Sep 1959, Uribe 3376 (COL); Mariquita, highway to Fresno, 800–900 m alt, 30 Jul 1957, Uribe 2998 (COL). WITHOUT EXACT LOCALITY. Mutis 1502 (US); Mutis 1501 (K, US).

Aphelandra straminea là một loài thực vật có hoa trong họ Ô rô. Loài này được Leonard mô tả khoa học đầu tiên năm 1953.