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Laelia kettieana
Another of the very small species of rupiculous
laelias, Laelia kettieana occur in fairly large quantities on the habitat. But although
the species in not rare in its habitat, the distribution area itself seems to be quite limited. So far, Laelia kettieana has only been confirmed from the Serra do Caraça, where plants can be found from
1500 to 2000 meters elevation, some 5000 to near 7000 ft. The species is closely related to Laelia reginae, but has slightly larger flowers with different coloration and lip shape and keels. Laelia reginae is native from the Serra da Moeda, and thus the two species are quite far apart. Interestingly,
there has been a bit of confusion between the two because of wrong habitat information. By their descriptions,
Laelia kettieana comes from the Serra da Moeda and L. reginae from the Caraça. Until the switch was clarified, people were having a hard time
figuring out which was which.
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Distribution Map for Laelia kettieana.
The species has a fairly restrict distribution area, centered around the Serra do Caraça. This is one of
the highest elevation rupiculous laelias, and only occurs on the nearby mountains if above 1500 meters above sea
level.
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On 1, we see the
typical way plants of Laelia kettieana are found in their habitat at the Serra do Caraça.
The plants have the rhizomes and lower parts of the pseudobulbs protected by cracks on the rock, some soil and/or
lichens or small herbs. This gives protection to the areas that will originate new growths and this is mostly the
rule for all the rupiculous laelias, certainly all the small ones. Flowers are produced up to 5 on a spike and
are up to 1" across.
On 2, we see a close-up of flowers of Laelia
kettieana. The red-purple margin of
the lip frontlobe is very distinctive for the species (although in some cases it is almost absent), as is the sparkling
texture of the segments. |
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