Fire-star Orchid

Appearance

''E. radicans'', like other members of subgenus ''Amphiglottium'', is a sympodial orchid which grows stems which do not swell into pseudobulbs and are covered with imbricating sheaths, produces a terminal inflorescence covered at its base by close imbricating sheaths, and produces a lip adnate to the column to its apex. The lip of ''E. radicans'' is trilobate, as with the other members of section ''Schistochila'', with the lacerate lobes which are typical of the subsections ''Carinata'' and ''Tuberculata''. ''E. radicans'' differs from the other lacerate ''Schistochila'' by producing roots from most of the stem.

''E. radicans'' seeds are quite small, at 320 seeds per milligram.

The chromosome number of an individual collected in Ecuador has been determined as 2n = 60. Other reported chromosome numbers for ''E. radicans'' include 2n = 40, 2n = 57, 2n = 62, and 2n = 64

Habitat

''E. radicans'' is part of a complex of several orange-flowered, weedy species that are unrelated but ecologically similar. Species within this group share pollinators as well as habitat, and are believed to exhibit what is known as convergent evolution, where unrelated species "converge" upon similar physical characteristics as a result of similar evolutionary pressures. Paulette Bierzychudek studied pollinator behavior in the apparent complex consisting of ''E. radicans'', ''Asclepias curassavicia'', and ''Lantana camara'', but could not find clear evidence that floral mimicry was affecting pollination rates for any of the three species.