Mexipedium

Mexipedium (V.A. Albert & M.W. Chase, 1992) is a monotypical genus of the Orchid family (Orchidaceae) (Subfamily Cypripedioideae), i.e. consisting of only one species, Mexipedium xerophyticum, known from a single location in Oaxaca, Mexico. This species was initially described as Phragmipedium xerophyticum by Soto Arenas, Salazar & Hàgsater, 1990, but transferred in 1992 to its own genus by Albert & Chase.

Its name is derived from the country of origin Mexico and the Latin "pes" (foot), referring to the form of the lip. The specific epithet "xerophyticum" means "preferring dry conditions".

Mexipedium was discovered in Mexico, and a small number of plants were removed for propagation to prevent rapacious growers from plundering their numbers. Plants are now available as propagules.

This is a litophytic orchid, growing on cliffs, shielded from the sun, at an elevation of 320 m. But it grows as well on rocks or in the detritus in the crevasses. Its growth form is unusual in that it tends to spread by runners, offset from the parent plant by several centimeters. The silvery-green leaves are small, stiff and semi-erect. There are ovoid pseudobulbs, covered by a sheath. The white flowers show a shieldlike, pinkish staminode and a slipper-shaped lip. The curved petals are scythe-shaped.

Allied genera include Cypripedium, Paphiopedilum, Selenipedium and Phragmipedium.

The genus Mexipedium is considered to be a Phragmipedium for legal purposes, so it is on Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).

Reference

Albert, V. A. and M. W. Chase. 1992. Mexipedium: A New Genus of Slipper Orchid (Cypripedioideae: Orchidaceae). Lindleyana 7 (3): 172-176.