Phalaenopsis difformis
Phalaenopsis difformis, also known as the dark brown "Phalaenopsis", is a species of epiphytic orchid native to Assam, Borneo, China South-Central, China Southeast, East Himalaya, Laos, Malaya, Myanmar, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sumatera, Thailand, Vietnam and West Himalaya. This species has a complex taxonomic history and has been previously assigned to several genera. The extensive list of synonyms may be explained by this species wide distribution. Within this species two variations, "Phalaenopsis difformis" var. "difformis" and "Phalaenopsis difformis" var. "kinabaluensis" (J.J.Wood, A.L.Lamb & Shim) Kocyan & Schuit., are formally recognized. Description. The very short-stemmed plants bear few, coriaceous, elliptic-oblong , flat, spreading leaves between 7-16 cm in length and 3-4 cm in width. The flowers are of unusual shape for the genus and arise between late June to early July from pendulous, many-flowered, 20-30 cm long inflorescences, which exceed the leaves in length. The greenish-yellow flowers with brown bands are 1.2 cm wide. The most striking feature is the unusual shape of the labellum. It is much longer than the sepals and the recurved side lobes have a pectinate (i.e. comb-like) margin. This species has often been found growing on "Glochidion velutinum" trees at  altitudes of 20 m in evergreen forests. Conservation. The IUCN has not assessed this species conservation status. It is however protected unter the CITES appendix II regulations of international trade.