Living in Peru : your everyday companion

LivinginPeru.com
Isabel Guerra

Mexican Science Magazine Phytotaxa announced recently that nine new species of orchids that had been unknown to scientists and that were actually discovered in Peru: M. canarina, M. coniformis, M. deniseae, M. dichaeoides, M. flabellata, M. hajekii, M. leucopurpurea, M. strioñata and M. viseeri.

One of these orchids, Maxillaria deniseae, was first seen and reported in the cloud forest of Machu Picchu Historic Sanctuary, in the province of Urubamba in the Cusco, actually in the gardens of Inkaterra Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel.

Thus this new species, M. deniseae, was named after Guislain of Koechlin Denise, wife of José Koechlin, the manager of the Inkaterra's Orchid Garden located in Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel, according to a press release issued by Inkaterra.

This small white orchid which measures only 1 cm. long by 1 cm. high, blooms only one week between April and March, and was published with its picture and description in the book “Orchids at Inkaterra Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel" in November 2007.

It is estimated that Peru has almost 3,500 species of orchids.

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