Aphelandra botanodes Leonard

Aphelandra botanodes Leonard

Aphelandra botanodes Leonard, Contrib. U.S. Nat. Herb. 31: 155. 1953.

Herbs; stems glabrous; leaf blades oblongelliptic, to 20 cm long and 6 cm wide, acuminate, narrowed at base, membranaceous, entire, glabrous, the costa and lateral veins (about 12 pairs) moderately prominent; petioles to 2 cm long, glabrous; flowers borne in a 3-parted inflorescence, the peduncle to 4 cm long, strigillose, the secondary peduncles 1–2 cm long, slender, strigillose, the spikes 2–4 cm long, dense, the bracts spreading or ascending, the rachis puberulous, the internodes of the spikes to 8 mm long; bracts subtending the secondary peduncles lanceolate, 12–15 mm long, 2–5 mm wide, those subtending the flower cluster (these sessile or borne on puberulous peduncles to 3 mm long) ovate, 7 mm long and 4 mm wide, acute, thin, glabrous, sparingly punctate, ciliate, the margins bearing towards tip a small pair of teeth, the costa prominent; bractlets obliquely lanceolate, carinate, 2 mm long, 0.5 mm wide, acute, subhyaline, ciliate, the costa prominent; calyx 3 mm long, the segments lanceolate, acute, subhyaline, delicately nerved, the margins sparingly ciliolate, the posterior segment 1 mm wide, the anterior and lateral segments slightly narrower; corolla puberulous, rose-blue (“roseo-cianeis”) about 0.7 cm long, the tube slender, 1 mm broad at base and throat, slightly wider above middle, the lips 3.5 mm long, the upper lip ovate, about 2 mm broad, obtuse, the lower lip 3-parted, the lobes divided nearly to base, obovate, about 1.5 mm wide, obtuse, ciliate; stamens reaching the mouth of the corolla tube; anthers about 2 mm long and 0.5 mm broad, acute at both ends, pilose and cohering at tip; filaments slender, about 0.5 mm long; ovary glabrous; style slender, 3 mm long; stigma flat, lanceolate, acute, 0.5 mm long and 0.25 mm wide.

TYPE.—J. Triana s.n. (holotype COL, isotypes K. P, US photo 3645), Colombia, Chocó, Novita, 170 m alt, Mar 1853.

DISTRIBUTION.—Known only from the typelocality.