01/12/2024 – 21:18
A group of Peruvian botanists discovered a new species of orchid in a reserve in the Amazon jungle of Peru, the National Service of Natural Areas Protected by the State (Sernanp) reported this Friday (12).
“The new species of orchid was recently discovered in Yanachaga Chemillén National Park, in the Pasco region,” the institution said in a statement.
The flower was named “Brachionidium montieliae L. Valenz” and is a “violet-colored orchid recorded at an altitude of 3,590 meters in one of the highest mountains in the Oxapampa-Asháninka-Yánesha Biosphere Reserve”, detailed Sernanp.
This new species inhabits the sclerophyll forest, where there is a great diversity of shrub and small tree species. It blooms between the months of July and August.
The genus “Brachionidium” comprises 84 species, of which 29 are registered in Peru.
The discovery was made during a botanical exploration trip led by biologist Luis Valenzuela, who is part of the scientific team at the Missouri Botanical Garden, in the United States.
After examining the specimen, at the end of 2023, it was described as a new species in the international orchidology magazine “Lankesteriana”.
The Yanachaga Chemillén park is a protected area with an area of 122 thousand hectares, where part of its biodiversity is in danger of extinction.
Ecuador is the country with the largest number of recorded orchid species, around 4,200. Then come Colombia (around 3,300), Brazil, Venezuela and Peru.
Scientists estimate that there are more than 20,000 species of orchids worldwide.
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