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| Cynorkis hasinai Hervouet & Ranaivo, in Hervouet et Ranaivo, 2026. |
Abstract
A new species of Orchidaceae, Cynorkis hasinai Hervouet & Ranaivo, sp. nov., discovered in the north of Madagascar, is described and assigned to section Parviflorae. It has a very distinctive uppermost 5-lobed lip and the closest species is Cynorkis schlechteri H.Perrier.
KEYWORDS: Madagascar, Cynorkis, new species, Madagascar, Cynorkis, new species
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| Cynorkis hasinai Hervouet & Ranaivo, sp. nov. Montagne d'Ambre National Park, rachis, 4 April 2024. front view of lip, 29 February 2020. side view of ovary and flower, 29 February 2020. Photograph by Jean-Michel Hervouet. Scale bar: 5 mm. |
Family Orchidaceae Juss.
Sub-family Orchidoideae A.A. Eaton
Tribe Orchideae (Dressler & Dodson) Verm.
Subtribe Habenariinae sensu Ngugi et al. 2020
Cynorkis hasinai Hervouet & Ranaivo, sp. nov.
Diagnosis. — This species belongs to the group of section Parviflorae species with inversed flowers. It differs from all other species by its 5-lobed lip with two very prominent upward 5 mm long intermediate lobes. Four other species in the section have inversed flowers and 5-lobed lip: Cynorkis quinqueloba H.Perrier ex Hermans, has intermediate lobes at least half the size of the middle lobe; Cynorkis quinquepartita has basal lobes bigger than the intermediate lobes but a little smaller than the middle one; Cynorkis verrucosa Bosser has much smaller intermediate lobes and the zone between the two basal lobes is verrucose. Cynorkis schlechteri H.Perrier is the closest species, with the intermediate lobes also the most prominent, but it is a much smaller plant (maximum 25 cm versus 42 cm for C. hasinai sp. nov.), with smaller flowers, the intermediate lobes being 3 mm long at most, versus 5 mm for C. hasinai sp. nov. The lip colour is light pink and white (versus dark red and white for C. hasinai sp. nov.). The flowering seasons are different (August-September for C. schlechteri, March-April for C. hasinai sp. nov.). The altitudes are different (0-800 m for C. schlechteri versus around 1200 m for C. hasinai sp. nov.).
Etymology. — The species is dedicated to Rakotobe Hasimbola Joelina, known as Hasina. He has been since 2017 our guide, driver and dear friend. He is an ardent orchid enthusiast and an outstanding prospector with a very keen eye. We owe him a lot of discoveries and he was able, with his son Landry in February 2020, after extensively scouting the place, to find one plant in flower among many others which were only in bud.
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| Liparis chantaliae Hermans & Hervouet, side by side with Cynorkis hasinai Hervouet & Ranaivo, sp. nov. Montagne d'Ambre National Park, 4 April 2024. Photograph by Jean-Michel Hervouet. |
Jean-Michel Hervouet and Jaona Ranaivo. 2026. Cynorkis hasinai Hervouet & Ranaivo, sp. nov. (Orchidaceae, Orchidioideae, Habenariinae), A New Species from Madagascar [une nouvelle espèce de Madagascar]. Adansonia. 48(14), 151-158. DOI: doi.org/10.5252/adansonia2026v48a14 (15 July 2026)
Une nouvelle espèce d'Orchidaceae, Cynorkis hasinai Hervouet & Ranaivo, sp. nov. découverte dans le nord de Madagascar est décrite et attribuée à la section Parviflorae. Elle possède un remarquable labelle supère pentalobé. L'espèce la plus proche est Cynorkis schlechteri H.Perrier.