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Issue: Vol. 777 No. 1: 29 Sept. 2026
Type: Article
Published: 2026-09-29
DOI: 10.11646/phytotaxa.777.1.4
Page range: 49-64
Abstract views: 52
PDF downloaded: 7

A cryptic new species in the Cyrtorchis ringens complex (Orchidaceae, Angraecinae)

AMAP Lab.; Univ. Montpellier; IRD; CNRS; INRAE; CIRAD; Montpellier; France
Herbarium and Library of African Botany; C.P. 265; Université Libre de Bruxelles; Campus de la Plaine; Boulevard du Triomphe 1050; Brussels; Belgium; Plant Systematics and Ecology Laboratory; Higher Teachers’ Training College; University of Yaoundé I; P.O. Box 47; Yaoundé; Cameroon; Missouri Botanical Garden; Africa & Madagascar Department; P.O. Box 299; St. Louis; Missouri 63166-0299; USA
Herbarium and Library of African Botany; C.P. 265; Université Libre de Bruxelles; Campus de la Plaine; Boulevard du Triomphe 1050; Brussels; Belgium; Centre for Functional Ecology; Laboratório Associado TERRA; Departamento de Ciências da Vida; Universidade de Coimbra; Calçada Martim de Freitas; 3000-456; Coimbra; Portugal
Missouri Botanical Garden; Africa & Madagascar Department; P.O. Box 299; St. Louis; Missouri 63166-0299; USA; Institut de Systématique; Évolution; et Biodiversité (ISYEB); Unité Mixte de Recherche 7205; Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique/Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle/École Pratique des Hautes Études; Université Pierre et Marie Curie; Sorbonne Universités; Paris; France
Herbarium and Library of African Botany; C.P. 265; Université Libre de Bruxelles; Campus de la Plaine; Boulevard du Triomphe 1050; Brussels; Belgium; Missouri Botanical Garden; Africa & Madagascar Department; P.O. Box 299; St. Louis; Missouri 63166-0299; USA
AMAP Lab.; Univ. Montpellier; IRD; CNRS; INRAE; CIRAD; Montpellier; France; Herbarium and Library of African Botany; C.P. 265; Université Libre de Bruxelles; Campus de la Plaine; Boulevard du Triomphe 1050; Brussels; Belgium; Missouri Botanical Garden; Africa & Madagascar Department; P.O. Box 299; St. Louis; Missouri 63166-0299; USA
Monocots Angraecoid orchids Central African flora epiphytes morphometrics submontane vegetation

Abstract

Recent morphological and phylogenetic studies highlighted the paraphyly of Cyrtorchis sect. Homocolleticon, in which Cyrtorchis ringens sensu lato constitutes a polyphyletic species complex. In this complex, three morphogroups were distinguished, representing putative new taxa. Here, we describe one of these new taxa based on a morphological and morphometric study of herbarium specimens from western and central tropical Africa (Cameroon and Guinea) taking into account previous phylogenetic results and phytogeographic data. The new species, Cyrtorchis leptophylla, is sister to C. ringens sensu stricto and belongs to the same clade as C. okuensis. It differs from C. ringens s.s. in having narrower, linear or narrowly elliptic leaves and a shorter inflorescence with fewer flowers. It is preliminarily assessed as Vulnerable (VU).

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How to Cite

Martin, H.V., Azandi, L.N., Farminhão, J., Bidault, E., Stévart, T. & Droissart, V. (2026) A cryptic new species in the Cyrtorchis ringens complex (Orchidaceae, Angraecinae). Phytotaxa 777 (1): 49–64. https://doi.org/10.11646/phytotaxa.777.1.4