Crepidium myosotis M.A.Clem. & D.L.Jones, Lasianthera 1 (1996) 33, fig. 8, pl. 8B & 9A
Type: Canberra Nat. Bot. Garden cult., 31 Jul. 1991 (Clements s.n.) (holo CANB; iso NCBG)
Terrestrial, forming loose clumps to c. 50 cm tall, consisting of 2-6 stems. Stems subcylindrical, 10-50 by 1-1.4 cm, consisting of 5-15 internodes, semi-erect to erect, straight or curved, slightly narrowed at the base, tapered suddenly near the apex, partially covered by scarious sheathing cataphylls, 6- to 10-leaved. Leaves semi-erect to spreading in a fan-like arrangement, petiolate; blade asymmetrically ovate to ovate-lanceolate, 5-20 by 2-6 cm, falcate, plicate, margins entire to slightly undulate, apex acute to acuminate; petiole 2-5 cm by c. 0.6-1 cm, deeply channelled. Inflorescence 15-40 cm long, erect, many-flowered; peduncle c. 3-6 cm long, shallowly furrowed, with numerous, very narrowly subulate, 0.6-1.4 by 0.15 cm large scales, the basal ones erect and crowded, the others spreading or recurved, acute to acuminate. Floral bracts similar to the peduncle scales but smaller. Flowers densely crowded, 1-1.1 by 0.7-0.8 cm. Median sepal oblong-spathulate, 0.65-0.75 by 0.25 cm, erect to recurved, with strongly revolute margins, apex broadly obtuse. Lateral sepals oblong obovate, 0.55-0.65 by 0.25-0.3 cm, strongly falcate, divergent, recurved behind the labellum, apex obtusely apiculate. Petals narrowly linear-obovate, 0.65-0.75 by 0.13 cm, spreading or recurved, divergent, margins strongly revolute, apex obtuse. Lip horseshoe-shaped, 0.7-0.8 by 0.55 cm, at right angles to the rachis, with two erect, narrowly triangular, parallel auricles c. 0.4 cm long flanking the column; apical region with six linear-subulate teeth to 0.2 cm long. Column porrect from the end of the ovary, 0.35 by 0.3 cm; column wings higher than the anther, obtuse to truncate; stigma transversely ovate, 0.18 cm across, sunken. Anther ovate, 0.1 by 0.15 cm; pollinia obovoid, 0.6 mm long, waxy. Pedicel with ovary 0.4-0.8 cm long, filiform, straight or curved, porrect to suberect. Fruit not seen. (After Clements & Jones, 1996)
Colours: Stems pale green. Flowers dark red, anther purplish, pollinia yellow.
Habitat: Terrestrial on sheltered south facing slopes in rainforest; 500 m.
Flowering time in the wild: Not known, described from cultivated specimen.
Distribution: Malesia (New Guinea, endemic).
Distribution in New Guinea: Papua New Guinea. See map: 185-180M.JPG.
Cultivation: Warm growing terrestrial, keep in shaded position.
Notes: We consider this to be a species of Malaxis, but to the best of our knowledge there is no name available under this genus.