虎斑兜兰 hu ban dou lan

Paphiopedilum markianum Fowlie.

Plants terrestrial, epiphytic, or lithophytic. Leaves 2-5, distichous; blade abaxially pale green and carinate, adaxially green or sometimes very obscurely tessellated with deep and light green, linear-ligulate, 13-27 × 2.1-2.7(-3.5) cm, leathery, rounded and tridenticulate at apex. Scape erect or suberect, terminating in a solitary flower; peduncle green, 20-25 cm, densely purple pubescent; floral bract green spotted or flushed with purple toward base and apex, elliptic-oblong, 3.5-6 cm, purple pubescent toward abaxial base; pedicel and ovary green, 3.5-5.5 cm, densely purple pubescent. Flower 9-12 cm in diam.; dorsal sepal yellowish green, marked with 3 longitudinal maroon bars; synsepal yellowish green with maroon stripes or spots toward base; petals yellowish green in basal half and purplish in apical half, with 2 longitudinal maroon bars in basal 2/5; lip pale yellow-green flushed with brownish or pale purple-brown; staminode whitish yellow, with a purple-brown center. Dorsal sepal broadly obovate or broadly ovate, 4-4.5 × 2.8-4 cm, puberulent abaxially and toward adaxial apex, basal margin recurved, minutely ciliate, acute-obtuse at apex; synsepal elliptic, 3-4.5 × 1.9-2.5 cm, puberulent abaxially and toward adaxial apex, obtuse to bilobulate at apex. Petals half-twisted, spatulate, 5.5-7 × 2.3-4 cm, adaxially purple pubescent at base, minutely ciliate, undulate at margin, rounded and obtusely tridenticulate at apex; lip helmet-shaped, 3.5-4.5 cm; pouch 2.5-3 × 2-2.5 cm, tapering toward apex. Staminode obovate-elliptic, 12-14 × 8-9 mm, obscurely tridenticulate or slightly mucronate at apex, with a central umbo. Fl. Jun-Aug. 2n = 26.

Shaded and rocky places in forests or thicket margins along valleys; 1400-2200 m. SE and W Yunnan (Lushui, Malipo) [NE Myanmar].

A closely related species, Paphiopedilum smaragdinum Z. J. Liu & S. C. Chen (J. Wuhan Bot. Res. 21: 489. 2003; P. tigrinum f. smaragdinum (Z. J. Liu & S. C. Chen) O. Gruss), was described recently from Lushui of W Yunnan. It is similar in floral appearance to, but different in color from, P. tigrinum. Its flower is pale yellow-green, lacking any deep-colored striping or spotting on the sepals and petals. It is probably best regarded as a variety of P. tigrinum.