The orchid, or Cattleya trianae as it is scientifically known, is one of the most beautiful flowers. Its texture, combined with the variety of colors and species, makes this flower truly unique. It is estimated that Colombia has more than 3,500 species growing across nearly the entire country. Furthermore, the country has become the second-largest exporter of orchids in the world, behind only the Netherlands.
Colombia's first virtual herbarium of living orchid collections is a research project led by the Colombian Orchidology Society (SCO) with the support of the Humboldt Institute and the Corporation for Biological Research (CIB). The main objective is to establish and develop the virtual herbarium, backing it with a tissue bank. This initiative aims to promote and conserve the species through sustainable use as established in Colombia's orchid conservation plan.
To achieve this goal, the Colombian research team will run a pilot program using one of the country's largest ex situ orchid collections. The first collection to be documented belongs to the company Colomborquídeas, which boasts more than 2,500 Colombian species and 200,000 individual plants. The aim is to inventory the species in this collection and move toward their legalization, identifying the orchid genera with the highest number of species.
"The research teams will consist of pairs made up of an amateur taxonomist from the SCO and a student from the CIB's comparative biology laboratory," the Corporation for Biological Research—which will play a key role in the study—stated in a press release.
Given the extensive nature of this undertaking, the research project will be divided into several stages. These will involve gathering highly detailed photographs showing all parts of the plant, including its architecture, growth habit, inflorescence, entire flower, and dissected flower. As part of this recognition process, the project seeks the legalization of these living orchid collections under Colombian biodiversity laws, allowing them to be integrated into the national biodiversity inventory.
Via Corporación para Investigaciones Biológicas, SCO.
This article was written by Yamid Rivera. The translation is powered by AI.
