Werauhia balanophora (Mez) J. R. Grant

Thecophyllum lineatum Mez & Werckl^; Mez, Bull. Herb. Boiss. II. 4: 875. 1904.
Stemless or short-caulescent, the flowering plant 5 dm. high, slender; leaves about 20 in a fasciculate rosette, about 3 dm. long, marked with thin wavy transverse lines especially near the base; sheaths ovate-elliptic, castaneous at the extreme base; blades linear, acuminate,
about 2 cm. wide, subglabrous, papery when dry; scape erect, much exceeding the leaves,
slender, glabrous; scape-bracts strict, densely imbricate, broadly lanceolate, marked like the
leaves; inflorescence densely cylindric or somewhat interrupted at the base, 6-12 cm. long, 25
mm. in diameter; primarjbracts spreading to recurved, narrowly triangular, 25 mm. long,
exceeding the flowers, marked like the leaves and scape-bracts; branches not over 3 ram. long;
floral bracts subreniform, convex, 8-9 mm. long, shorter than the sepals, rigidly coriaceous,
even; flowers subsessile, 2 at the end of each lower branch; sepals suborbicular, barely emargi-
nate, slightly asjTnmetric, 8 mm. long, thick, coriaceous, even; petals narrowly obovatc, obtuse,
20 mm. long, each bearing 2 scales at base; stamens shorter than the petals.
Type locality: Vicinity of Cartage, Costa Rica, altitude 1200-1600 meters. DiSTKiBUTiON : Costa Rica.

Thecophyllum balanophorum (Mez) Mez, Bull Herb. Boiss. II. 3: 131. 1903.
Cuzmania balaiwfhora Mez. in DC. Monog. Phan. 9: 918. 1896.
Stemless; flowering plant up to 4 dm. high; leaves about 20 in a dense rosette, suljerect, 35 cm. long; sheaths large, ovate, stifT, covered throughout with a white membrane of appressed .scales, blackish below especially toward the base; blades linear, acuminate, 2-3 cm, wide, stiff, white-lepidote, pale below; scape erect, equaling or slightly exceeding the leaves, slender, slightly angled, glabrous; scape-bracts strict, exceeding the internodes, foliaceous but narrower than the leaves, lepidote; inflorescence few-flowered to many-flowered; primary bracts reflexed, triangular, acuminate; floral bracts like the sepals but exceeded by them; flowers 2 in the axil of each primary bract ; sepals orbicular, 9 mm. long, broadly obtuse, coriaceous, glabrous, even outside, striate within, free; petals elliptic, obtuse, 2 cm. long, bearing 2 scales at the base; capsule slenderly obovoid, 20 mm. long, 7 mm. in diameter, cinereous; valves subligneous; seeds nearly 5 mm. long; coma reddish-brown.
TypR locality: Irazu Volcano. Costa Rica. Distribution: Northeastern Costa Rica.

Werauhia balanophora is a bromeliad species in the genus Werauhia. This species is endemic to Costa Rica.