The American Orchid Society

SITF Submissions and Findings

The Species Identification Task Force receives submissions from orchid judging centers or exhibitors. The submissions are labeled by the name submitted under. When the plant's identity is confirmed, the last line in the post will have the correct name. We sometimes update pages with reference material pertinent to the submission.

Ornithocephalus-gladiatus-2023-01-17 *SITF has determined that this plant is Ornithocephalus dolabratus, not Ornithocephalus gladiatus (Jul 2023).

This plant does not match the drawing by Hooker in 1824, the apiculations on the apices of the sepals and petals are much longer than shown in the drawing. The form of O. dolabratus fits this flower better than O gladiatus, especially the dorsal sepal. The lateral sepals appear connated all the way to a long, apiculated apex, where the lateral sepals on O. gladiatus are spread and the long spur like extension at the apex of the lip matches O. dolabratus as can be seen in the IOSPE photo. Other matching photos can be found in the OW and Pinterest.

Posted on Jan 17, 2023

Ornithocephalus-montealagreae-2022-03-10 *SITF has determined that this plant is Ornithocephalus dolobratus, not O. montealegreae (Aug 2023).

Plant identification was aided by Dr. Franco Pupulin who stated that the plant is not O. montealegreae. The flowers don't match O. montealegreae and the plant habit looks different. This plant most closely resembles O. dolabratus. O. dolabratus is from Ecuador and is very similar to O. aristatus which is from Panama. O. aristatus has a different column shape with wings at the base and a small cluster of papilose structures, which are not evident on this plant. The O. dolabratus photo in the IOSPE is a close match.

Posted on Mar 10, 2022