Table 1.

Morphological comparison of Gastrochilus prionophyllus and its closely related species.

Character	G. prionophyllus	G. corymbosus	G. distichus
Habitat	Limestone forest	Subalpine rhododendron forest	Monsoon evergreen broad leaved forest
Plant length	10–15 cm	10–15 cm	10–30 cm
Leaf	Ovate, acuminate with 2 awns, margin serrate	Ovate, acuminate, without awn, margin entire	Lanceolate, acuminate with 2–3 awns, margin entire
Inflorescence	Subumbellate, peduncle 1.0 cm in length, 2–3 flowers	Corymb, peduncle1.3 cm in length, 4 flowers	Subumbellate, peduncle 2.5–3.0 cm in length, 2–4 flowers
Epichile	Reniform, with thickly and orbicular central cushion, and margin with dentations	Rhomboid, with diamond-shaped central cushion, and margin entire	Suborbicular, with orbicular central cushion, and margin entire
Hypochile	Subconic	Cupular	Subcupular
Flower period	March– April	October–November	January–May