Pleurothallis minutilabia, a species unique in subsection Macrophyllae-Fasciculatae because of the minute, highly reduced lip, is described and compared to the most similar species in the subsection. It is also compared morphologically to Pleurothallis kaynagata from section Abortivae, to which P. minutilabia is not related, but which also possesses a highly reduced lip. The morphology of the flower of P. minutilabia is discussed briefly in relation to possible pollination mechanisms. The distribution, restricted to Zamora Chinchipe, southern Ecuador, and the conservation status are addressed. Key words / Palabras clave: cloud forest, Ecuador, labellar morphology, Pleurothallis, pollination

The genus Lepanthes Swartz (1799a: 85) with more than 1200 species (Bogarín et al. 2018) is the largest genus in Pleurothallidinae, comparable only with Stelis Swartz (1799b: 239). It is distributed throughout the Neotropics from central Mexico and the Antilles south to Peru and Bolivia, with only few species occurring in Brazil (Luer & Thoerle 2012). The diversity of Lepanthes species in Peru is probably underestimated. About 58–64 species have been formally recorded (Tropicos 2016, Govaerts et al. 2016, Damian & Larsen 2017), which is relatively fewer compared to neighbouring countries where the genus is relatively well known, such as Colombia and Ecuador, each with more than 300 species (Thoerle & Hirtz, 2015). At the moment, several new species and new records of the genus for the country are awaiting publication, and as more extensive exploration continues, the number of Lepanthes attributed to Peru is expected to increase.

aBstract. In this paper we summarize the taxonomic history of Pleurothallis crocodiliceps Rchb.f. and demonstrate that the species described by Reichenbach did not possess the stereotypical minute, pubescent, tri-lobed lip, with basal lobes modified into "horns". The first two species described with such a lip were P. arietina and P. nelsonii. Rather than a single widely distributed, variable species, with a morphologically constant lip, P. crocodiliceps, we recognize the P. arietina-P. nelsonii species complex. Herein we describe four new species in this complex and discuss the morphological characters useful in distinguishing among the members of the complex. We also discuss the nature of the lip possessed by members of this complex and propose that it may mimic a female insect luring a male fly into pollinating the flower by pseudocopulation.

Three new species of Lepanthes (Orchidaceae: Pleurothallidinae) from Northern Peru are described here. Each species is illustrated with a line drawing, also a photograph for each one is presented. For each species information about distribution, habitat, and a comparison with similar taxa is given. The new species are named as Lepanthes pseudoprofusa, Lepanthes odobenus, and Lepanthes peruviana.

In this paper three new species of Lepanthes (Orchidaceae: Pleurothallidinae) from Ecuador, Panama and Venezuela are described. Each species is illustrated with a line drawing. For each of the new species information about distribution, habitat, and a comparison with similar taxa is given. The new species are named: Lepanthes dubbeldamii, Lepanthes liesiae and Lepanthes luerorum.