Genus Dryadella Luer 1978

Kingdom Plantae

Phylum (Division) Spermatophyta

Subphylum (Subdivision) Magnoliophytina (angiosperms)

Class Liliopsida (monocotyledons)

Subclass Liliidae

Order Orchidales

Family Orchidaceae

Subfamily Epidendroideae

Tribe Epidendreae

Subtribe Pleurothallidinae Lindl. 1830

Genus Dryadella Luer 1978b, p. 207

Type Species: Dryadella elata (Luer 1978a, p. 199) Luer 1978b, p. 206

Habit: Epiphytic.

Description: Plants small to very small (3 to 6 cm.); densely tufted, growing into large clumps from creeping rhizomes. Leaves single, erect, with short ramicauls; narrow, fleshy. Flowers small, produced singly or successively in short racemes from an annulus. Sepals commonly caudate, connate basally into a gaping cup. Where the lateral sepals are deflexed from the cup above the base, a transverse callus like a transverse fold extends across the width of the sepals so that the petals and lip above protrude over the characteristic "dam." Petals short, broad and multi-angled. Lip unguicalate; the bicallous blade of the lip is hinged to the column foot by a long slender claw. Column broadly winged and hooded with a ventral anther and stigma. There are two 2 pollina.

(After Luer 1986.)

Distribution: Approximately 40 species; distributed from southern Mexico to southern Brazil and northern Argentina.

Culture: Easy to cultivate in moist, intermediate to cool growing conditions. High humidity and good light suit them best.

Dryadella albicans (Luer) Luer 1978

Flowers white, lightly dotted red at the base. Occurs from Costa Rica To Ecuador at elevations of 400 to 2400 metres.

Dryadella auriculigera (Rchb.f.)

Dryadella aviceps (Rchb.f.) Luer

One of the larger species.  Leaves broad, usually suffused with purple. Flowers yellow-green, purple spotted. Sepals with short tails. Occurs in south Brazil where it is relatively common.

Dryadella bradei (Schltr.)

Dryadella butcheri aut?

Dryadella carinata (Cogn.)

Dryadella crenulata (Pabst)

Dryadella cristata aut?

Dryadella dolichopoda (Luer)

Dryadella dressleri aut?

Dryadella edwallii (Cogn.) Luer 1978

Plants small. Inflorescence short, arising from the leaf base most often during the summer but possible at other times of the year. Flowers larger than most species; yellow, purple dotted. Sepals with long tails. Occurs in Brazil.

Fig. ?: Dryadella edwallii (Cogn.) Luer 1978

Dryadella elata (Luer 1978a, p.199) Luer 1978b, p.206

Found in Ecuador as a hot growing epiphyte at elevations of 0 to 600 metres and it blooms in the spring.

Dryadella espirito-sanctensis (Pabst)

Dryadella gnoma aut?

Dryadella gomes-ferreirae (Pabst)

Dryadella guatemalensis (Schltr.) Luer

Leaves long, very narrow. Flowers spotted purple. Sepals pointed but lacking true tails. Frequent in Central America and adjacent Colombia.

Dryadella hirtzii aut?

Dryadella kautskyi (Pabst)

Dryadella liliputiana (Cogn.) Luer 1978

Plant very small, densely caespitose. Inflorescence numerous, very short, with solitary flowers held a bit higher that the leaves. Winter flowering. Flowers pale yellow, dotted red. Lip yellow. Occurs Sao Paulo state, Brazil.

Dryadella linearifolia (Ames)

Dryadella meiacyllium (Rchb.f.)

Dryadella melloi (Pabst)

Dryadella minuscula aut?

Dryadella obrieniana (Rolfe)

A junior synonym of Dryadella aviceps (Rchb.f.) Luer.

Dryadella odontostele aut?

Dryadella osmariniana (Braga)

Dryadella paranensis (Schltr.)

Dryadella paulensis (Barb. Rodr.)

Dryadella perpusilla (Krzl.)

Dryadella popayanensis (Lehm. & Krzl.)

Dryadella pusiola (Rchb.f.)

Dryadella sessilis (Barb. Rodr.)

Dryadella simula (Rchb. f. 1875) Luer 1978

Leaves dark green, glossy. Inflorescence short, single or few flowered, carrying a single flower at a time, at mid leaf height. Flowers in the spring or several times a year. Flowers dark yellow, dotted red. Lip dark red/purple. Cool to cold growing. Occurs at 2000 to 2200 metres in the lower cloud forests where there is a pronounced dry season in the summer and autumn; in northern South America south to Peru. It does not occur in Central America where its name is usually applied to other species.

Dryadella simulatrix (Krzl.)

Dryadella sororcula (Luer) Luer 1996

Occurs from Nicaragua to Panama, in wet forests at elevations of 350 to 1400 metres.

Dryadella summersii (L.O. Wms.)

Dryadella susanae (Pabst)

Dryadella zebrina (Porsch) Luer 1978

Plant small, densly caespitose. Leaves arising from a much branched rhizome; erect, around 6 cm, elliptic-lanceolate, coriaceous, stalked; dark, tinged red.   Inflorescence shorter than the leaves. Flowers single; campanulate; ochre yellow dotted red/purple. Lip dark red. Sepals very elongated. Occurs in Brazil, Peru and Bolivia.