Crepidium crenulatum (Ridl.) Sushil K. Singh, Agrawala & Jalal, Orchids

Crepidium crenulatum (Ridl.) Sushil K. Singh, Agrawala & Jalal, Orchids View in CoL of India : 172. 2019;

Schuit. & al., Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot.

Gard. 139: 68. 2022. Microstylis crenulata Ridl. J.

Linn. Soc., Bot. 24: 346. 1888. Malaxis crenulata

(Ridl.) Kuntze, Revis. Gen. Pl. 2: 673. 1891, nom.

illeg., non. Blume, 1825; Seidenf., Bot. Tidsskr.

73(2): 102. 1978; Joseph, Orchids Nilgiris: 44. 1987.

Seidenfia crenulata (Ridl.) Szlach., Fragm. Florist.

Geobot., Suppl. 3: 122. 1995. Crepidium crenulatum

(Ridl.) Kottaim., Int. J. Curr. Res. Biosci. Pl. Biol.

6(10): 40. 2019. nom. superfl. Type: INDIA . Deccan,

Western Nilgiris, Beddome 8108 (holo BM [digital image with barcode BM000082880!]). Figs. 1 View Fig & 2 View Fig Terrestrial herbs, up to 20 cm high. Roots 1.25 mm in diam., arising from the base of the pseudobulb, fibrous. Pseudobulbs 1–1.25 × c. 1 cm, broad-ovoid to pyriform, erect, fleshy, glabrous, entirely covered with sheathing leaf bases; new shoots arising from the base of the matured pseudobulbs. Leaves 2–3, 2–3.25 × 2–2.3 cm, basal one smaller, base clasping, lamina ovate to oblong-elliptic, entire, acute, prominently 5 veined, sparsely pubescent. Inflorescence apical on developing shoot upto 16 cm long, successive, angular; peduncle 6 cm long without sterile bracts; rachis 5–10 cm long, laxly 15–30-flowered, floral bracts minute, strongly reflexed and adpressed to the peduncle, 2–2.5 × c. 1.5 mm, ovate-triangular, entire, acute. Flowers 6 mm long, 3.5 mm across, tepals deep yellow, labellum bright yellow with purple tinge at disc, column pale purple, yellowish green in bud, glabrous, non- resupinate. Pedicle plus ovary c. 3 × 1 mm, curved, angular. Dorsal sepal ovate - lanceolate, 3.5–4 × 1.5–2 mm, entire, obtuse, outcurved, deflexed at apex, 3 veined; lateral sepals 2–2.25 × 1–1.5 mm, broadly ovate, entire, obtuse, outcurved, strongly deflexed and projecting towards dorsal sepal. Petals 3 × 1 mm, ovate, entire, conduplicate, slightly deflexed at middle, 3-veined. Labellum 2–2.25 × 3.5–4, flabellate-reniform, strongly deflexed at base, papillate, broadly toothed at apical margin, base fleshy, conduplicate, adnate to the base of the column; teeth 5, on each side of the mid-tooth, 0.2–0.4 × 0.2–0.5 mm, broad-triangular, obtuse; mid-tooth shorter than the lateral ones; disc c. 1 × 1.25 mm, deeply concave, glandular, callus c. 0.75 × 0.5 mm, projecting upwards at the base of the disc. Column c. 1 × 1 mm, stout, erect, apex having c. 0.75 mm long stelidia, foot absent; rostellum c. 0.5 mm long, attenuate; clinandrium 2-grooved; anther cap c. 0.75 × 0.75 mm, cordate, two lobed, creamy yellow; pollinia 4 in two groups of two each, sessile, yellow and waxy. Stigmatic cavity c. 0.25 × 0.5 mm, transverse elliptic. Capsule c. 7 × 2 mm, vertically ridged.

Flowering & fruiting: Flowering and fruiting from October to December.

Habitat: Crepidium crenulatum is a rare ephemeral and currently known from the Pakasura Hills, Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve. It grows in the grasslands at elevations between 1700–1900 m above sea level. This species was found together with the Biophytum intermedium Wight , Canthium rheedei DC. , Curculigo orchioides Gaertn. , Drosera peltata Thunb. , Gentiana quadrifaria Blume , Habenaria longicornu Lindl. , Impatiens clavicornu Turcz. , Leucas sufFruticosa Benth. , Nicoteba nilgherrensis (Nees) Lindau , Osbeckia brachystemon Naudin , Rhodomyrtus tomentosa (Aiton) Hassk. , Sisyrinchium rosulatum E.P.Bicknell , Striga lutea Lour. , Strobilanthes neilgherrensis Bedd. , Torenia difFusa D.Don and Wahlenbergia marginata (Thunb.) A.DC.

Distribution: India ( Kerala & Tamil Nadu). Endemic.

Specimens examined: INDIA , Tamil Nadu, Nilgiri District, Pakasuran Hills , 1890 m, 30.12.2023 ,

G. Aazhivaendhan & C. Rajasekar 178278 (MH);

Pakasura Hills, 1828 m, 10.12.2017, C. Rajasekar

224 (Bharathiar University Herbarium).

Notes: Crepidium crenulatum was originally described as Microstylis crenulata Ridl. by Ridley in 1888 based on the specimens collected by R.H. Beddome from Western Nilgiris. Other than this, there is no further collection available from any of the Indian herbaria. Joseph (1987) included the species in Orchids of Nilgiris solely based on Beddome’s type collection and this was followed by the subsequent workers (Narasimhan & Irwin 2020; Karuppusamy et al., 2022; Anusubha et al., 2023). However, Joseph and Ansari (1989) did not include this species in Orchidaceae of Tamil Nadu due to the non-availability of specimens in Madras Herbarium (MH). Crepidium crenulatum is very closely similar to C. malabarica in general aspect, but it differs by the flabellate-reniform lip with 9-12 teeth (whereas C. malabarica having triangular lip with 9 teeth) and column with stelidia on dorsal surface ( vs. column without stelidia in C. malabarica ).