Lycaste

Lycaste
Lycaste skinneri
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Embryophytes
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Spermatophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Monocots
Order:	Asparagales
Family:	Orchidaceae
Subfamily:	Epidendroideae
Tribe:	Cymbidieae
Subtribe:	Maxillariinae
Genus:	Lycaste Lindl., 1843
Species
See text
Synonyms1
Deppia Raf. Selbyana Archila × Lycobyana Archila

Lycaste, abbreviated as Lyc. in horticultural trade, is a genus of orchids that contains about 30 species with egg-shaped pseudobulbs and thin, plicate (pleated) leaves.

Lycaste flowers, like all orchid blooms, have three petals and three sepals. The petals are typically yellow, white, or orange, and the sepals are yellow, orange, green, or reddish brown. The petals and sepals may be marked sparsely or densely with red, reddish purple, purple, or reddish brown spots. The lip (ventral petal) may be very similar to the other two petals, as in Lycaste aromatica or Lycaste brevispatha, or colored quite distinctively, as in several subspecies and varieties of Lycaste macrophylla. Most Lycaste flowers are medium in size, averaging about 5 to 10 cm, but Lycaste schilleriana is 16–18 cm across. Some Lycaste blooms have a unique fragrance - the scent of Lycaste aromatica has been variously described as cinnamon or clove. The blooms of the species Lycaste cochleata, Lycaste consobrina, and Lycaste cruenta also have a pleasant scent.

The World Checklist of Selected Plant Families, maintained by the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew, is recognized by the American Orchid Society as the definitive authority on orchid taxonomy. The Checklist currently acknowledges 31 species of Lycaste, 3 natural hybrids, 2 subspecies (and 1 nominate subspecies), and 1 variety. Orchid growers and orchid collectors, who tend to be taxonomic splitters more often than lumpers, recognize additional subspecies and varieties of Lycaste, as well as alba (white) forms of several species.

The Lycastes are divided into four sections and two subsections:

• Section Deciduosae - deciduous, that is, they usually lose their leaves during an annual dormant period
  • Subsection Xanthanthae - have yellow to orange blooms; the name comes from xantho (yellow) and anthos (flower)
  • Subsection Paradeciduosae - have pink-marked white blooms; the name comes from para (similar or near) and deciduosae (deciduous)
• Section Longisepalae - has very long sepals
• Section Macrophyllae - keep their leaves during dormancy; the name comes from macro (large) and phyllae (leaves)
• Section Fimbriatae - typically have fringed lips

All but two of the Deciduosae have spines at the apices of their pseudobulbs, that become exposed when the leaves are dropped. The exceptions are the Xanthanthae species Lycaste lasioglossa and the Paradeciduosae species Lycaste tricolor. Both of these species lack spines, and may bloom when leaves are still present.

As of March 2026, Plants of the World Online accepted the following species:²

Section	Image	Name	Distribution	Elevation (m)
Section Deciduosae		Lycaste aromatica (Graham ex Hooker) Lindley 1843	Mexico, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Honduras and El Salvador	500–2,000 metres (1,600–6,600 ft)
		Lycaste bermudezii (Archila) J.M.H.Shaw 2014	Guatemala
		Lycaste bradeorum Schltr. 1923	Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa Rica	700–1,250 metres (2,300–4,100 ft)
		Lycaste campbelli C. Schweinf. 1949	Colombia (Choco, Antioquia)
		Lycaste chaconii (Archila) J.M.H.Shaw 2014	Guatemala
		Lycaste cochleata Lindl. & Paxton 1850-1	Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua
		Lycaste consobrina Rchb.f 1852	Mexico, Guatemala and Nicaragua	200–1,000 metres (660–3,280 ft)
		Lycaste crinita Lindl. 1844	Mexico (Nayarit, Jalisco, Michoacan, Guerrero, and Oaxaca )	300–1,700 metres (980–5,580 ft)
		Lycaste cruenta Lindl. 1843	Mexico, Guatemala, Costa Rica and El Salvador	1,800–2,200 metres (5,900–7,200 ft)
		Lycaste deppei (Lodd.)Lindley 1843	Mexico (Tamaulipas, Puebla, Vera Cruz, Oaxaca and Chiapas), Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua	1,100–1,700 metres (3,600–5,600 ft)
		Lycaste lasioglossa Rchb. f. 1872	Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras	1,400–1,800 metres (4,600–5,900 ft)
		Lycaste macrobulbon Lindl. 1850-1	Colombia, Venezuela, Brazil	1,200–2,000 metres (3,900–6,600 ft)
		Lycaste angelae Oakley 2008	Costa Rica, Panama	1,000–1,700 metres (3,300–5,600 ft)
		Lycaste brevispatha (Klotzsch) Lindl. & Paxton 1852	Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Panama	800–1,800 metres (2,600–5,900 ft)
		Lycaste luminosa Oakley 1991	Central America
		Lycaste suaveolens Summerh. 1931	Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador and Nicaragua	600–1,800 metres (2,000–5,900 ft)
		Lycaste tricolor Rchb. f. 1863	Costa Rica, Panama	600–1,000 metres (2,000–3,300 ft)
Section Lycaste		Lycaste annakamilae Archila, Szlachetko & Chiron 2015	Guatemala (Purulha, Baja Verapaz,)	1,200 metres (3,900 ft)
		Lycaste bruncana Bogarín 2007	Costa Rica, Panama	100–400 metres (330–1,310 ft)
		Lycaste dowiana Endr. & Rchb.f. 1874	Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama	700–1,400 metres (2,300–4,600 ft)
		Lycaste fuscina Oakeley 2008	Venezuela, Ecuador
		Lycaste guatemalensis Archila 1999	Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador	1,000–1,700 metres (3,300–5,600 ft)
		Lycaste leucantha (Klotsch) Lindl. 1851	Guatemala, Costa Rica, Panama	600–2,000 metres (2,000–6,600 ft)
		Lycaste macrophylla (Poepp. & Endl.) Lindl. 1842	Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia and Venezuela	400–2,400 metres (1,300–7,900 ft)
		Lycaste measuresiana (B.S.Williams) Oakeley 2007	Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Colombia, Venezuela	1,100–1,600 metres (3,600–5,200 ft)
		Lycaste occulta Oakeley 2007	Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador	2,600 metres (8,500 ft)
		Lycaste panamanensis (Fowlie) Archila 2002 publ. 2008	Colombia, Costa Rica, Panamá	1,000 metres (3,300 ft)
		Lycaste powellii Schltr. 1922	Panama, Colombia	50–800 metres (160–2,620 ft)
		Lycaste puntarenasensis (Fowlie) Oakeley 2007	Costa Rica, Panama	1,000 metres (3,300 ft)
		Lycaste sebastianii Archila 2011	Guatemala (Alta Verapaz )	600–700 metres (2,000–2,300 ft)
		Lycaste viridescens (Oakeley) Oakeley 2007	Peru
		Lycaste virginalis Scheidw.) Linden 1888	Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador	1,200–1,800 metres (3,900–5,900 ft)
		Lycaste xanthocheila (Fowlie) Archila 2002 publ. 2008	Guatemala, Costa Rica	800 metres (2,600 ft)
		Lycaste xytriophora Linden & Rchb. f. 1872	Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia (El Choco) and Ecuador	600–1,800 metres (2,000–5,900 ft)
		Lycaste zacapana Archila 2010	Guatemala (Alta Verapaz )	350–400 metres (1,150–1,310 ft)

Natural hybrids

• Lycaste × groganii (Lycaste aromatica × Lycaste deppei)
• Lycaste × michelii (Lycaste cochleata × Lycaste lasioglossa)
• Lycaste × smeeana (Lycaste deppei × Lycaste skinneri)

Hybrids

• Angulocaste (Anguloa × Lycaste)
• Cochlecaste (Cochleanthes × Lycaste)
• Colaste (Colax × Lycaste)
• Lycasteria (Bifrenaria × Lycaste)
• Lycida (Ida × Lycaste)
• Maxillacaste (Lycaste × Maxillaria)
• Zygocaste (Lycaste × Zygopetalum)

A 2002 revision of the Lycaste genus moved many species of the section Fimbriatae to a new genus, Ida. The 34 species of Ida occur in South America and the Caribbean Islands (Ida barringtoniae), while true Lycastes occur mostly in Mexico and Central America. The genus Ida is recognized by the World Checklist of Monocotyledons.