彩云兜兰 cai yun dou lan

Cypripedium wardii (Summerhayes) C. Curtis (1933), not Rolfe (1913); Paphiopedilum brevilabium Z. J. Liu & J. Yong Zhang; P. microchilum Z. J. Liu & S. C. Chen; P. multifolium Z. J. Liu & J. Yong Zhang.

Plants terrestrial. Leaves 2-5, distichous; blade abaxially rather densely mottled with purple, adaxially tessellated with light or bluish and dark green, oblong or elliptic, 8-23 × 2.5-4.1 cm, sparsely ciliate toward basal margin, slightly bilobulate or tridenticulate at acute apex. Scape erect, terminating in a solitary flower; peduncle purple-red, 15-40 cm, pubescent; floral bract ovate-lanceolate, conduplicate, 1.8-2.3 cm, abaxially pubescent, ciliate; pedicel and ovary 4-5.5 cm, pubescent. Flower 7-10 cm in diam.; dorsal sepal and synsepal white or whitish green, veined with deep green; petals greenish white, flushed with purplish brown and spotted throughout with blackish brown; lip greenish to pale yellow-brown, veined and finely spotted with brown; staminode greenish marbled, deep green centrally. Dorsal sepal ovate, 3-4.5 × 2-3.5 cm, both surfaces puberulent particularly on veins, ciliate, acuminate at apex; synsepal ovate-lanceolate or lanceolate, 3.5-4.5 × 1.4-2.5 cm, both surfaces puberulent, ciliate, acute or acuminate at apex. Petals usually spreading horizontally, suboblong or oblong-lanceolate, 4.5-6 × 1.5-2 cm, adaxially minutely puberulent particularly in basal half, long ciliate, shortly acuminate at apex; lip helmet-shaped, 3.4-4.6 cm, warty on incurved lateral lobes; pouch 2.2-2.5 × 2-2.4 cm, outside slightly puberulent. Staminode obcordate-lunate, 9-10 × 13-15 mm, puberulent adaxially, apical sinus with a small central tooth and 2 incurved lateral teeth. Fl. Dec-Mar. 2n = 41, 44.

Shaded and steep rocks or near roots of large trees at forest margins or in forests along streams (1-3 m from water); ca. 2000 m. SW Yunnan (Lushui) [Myanmar].

Paphiopedilum ×yingjiangense Z. J. Liu & S. C. Chen (Acta Bot. Yunnan. 29: 289. 2007) was recently described as a natural hybrid from W Yunnan (Yingjiang). In the protologue, P. villosum and P. wardii were suggested as the putative parents. However, a more likely parentage is P. spicerianum and P. wardii.