''Epidendrum magnoliae'', sometimes called ''Epidendrum conopseum'' or the green-fly orchid, is a species of

orchid Orchids are plants that belong to the family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant. Along with the Asteraceae, they are one of the two largest families of flowering ...

in the genus '' Epidendrum''. It is the most northern-growing

epiphytic An epiphyte is an organism that grows on the surface of a plant and derives its moisture and nutrients from the air, rain, water (in marine environments) or from debris accumulating around it. The plants on which epiphytes grow are called phoroph ...

orchid in North America, being found wild in the southeastern United States from

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

, and also in northeastern Mexico (

Nuevo León Nuevo León () is a state in the northeast region of Mexico. The state was named after the New Kingdom of León, an administrative territory from the Viceroyalty of New Spain, itself was named after the historic Spanish Kingdom of León. With a ...

San Luis Potosí San Luis Potosí (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of San Luis Potosí ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de San Luis Potosí), is one of the 32 states which compose the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 58 municipalities and i ...

Tamaulipas Tamaulipas (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Tamaulipas ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Tamaulipas), is a state in the northeast region of Mexico; one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Federal Entiti ...

).Biota of North America Program 2014 county distribution map, ''Epidendrum conopseum''
/ref> ''Epidendrum magnoliae'' grows on the branches of

evergreen In botany, an evergreen is a plant which has foliage that remains green and functional through more than one growing season. This also pertains to plants that retain their foliage only in warm climates, and contrasts with deciduous plants, which ...

and

deciduous In the fields of horticulture and Botany, the term ''deciduous'' () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, aft ...

trees at low elevations less than above sea level. Leaves are broadly elliptical, up to long, thick and almost leathery. One plant will produce 6-14 flowers, pale green to bronze-colored.Flora of North America, ''Epidendrum magnoliae'' Muhlenberg, 1813. Green-fly orchid
/ref> The

diploid Ploidy () is the number of complete sets of chromosomes in a cell, and hence the number of possible alleles for autosomal and pseudoautosomal genes. Sets of chromosomes refer to the number of maternal and paternal chromosome copies, respectively ...

chromosome A chromosome is a long DNA molecule with part or all of the genetic material of an organism. In most chromosomes the very long thin DNA fibers are coated with packaging proteins; in eukaryotic cells the most important of these proteins are ...

number of ''E. magnoliae'' has been determined as 2''n'' = 40, the

haploid Ploidy () is the number of complete sets of chromosomes in a cell, and hence the number of possible alleles for autosomal and pseudoautosomal genes. Sets of chromosomes refer to the number of maternal and paternal chromosome copies, respectively ...

chromosome number as ''n'' = 20.page 251 of Leonardo P. Felix and Marcelo Guerra: "Variation in chromosome number and the basic number of subfamily Epidendroideae (Orchidaceae)" ''Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society'' 163(2010)234-278. The Linnean Society of London. downloaded October 2010
/ref>

References

External links

Discover Life
* H. G. Reichenbach "ORCHIDES" in Müller, Carl, Ed. ''Walpers Annales Botanices Systematicae'' 6(1861)408. Berlin. Described as ''E. conopseum''
''Epidendrum conopseum'' - Wildlife Resources Division, From: Patrick, Allison and Krakow (1995), Protected Plants of Georgia, Georgia Department of Natural Resources
drawing, description, ecological information

photo
Greenfly Orchids ''(Epidendrum magnoliae)'' in situ.
video showing ''Epidendrum magnoliae'' in the wild in Florida
Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, University of TexasAtlas of Florida Vascular Plants, ''Epidendrum conopseum''
magnoliae Flora of the Southeastern United States Flora of Northeastern Mexico Orchids of Florida Plants described in 1813 Taxa named by Gotthilf Heinrich Ernst Muhlenberg Flora without expected TNC conservation status {{Laeliinae-stub