Sunipia Lindley (1833: 179)

Sunipia grandiflora (Rolfe) Hunt (1971: 184), Seidenfaden (1972b: 113, 1986b: 173), Schuiteman et al. (2008: 310), Xu et al. (2010: 421), Li et al. (2013: 128).

(Fig. 14)

≡ Ione grandiflora Rolfe (1908: 413) . Seidenfaden (1969: 211).

≡ Bulbophyllum lopalanthum J.J.Verm., Schuit. & de Vogel (Vermeulen et al. 2014: 104), Zhou et al. (2016: 17), Aung et al. (2020: 65), Ormerod et al. (2021: 38), Jin et al. (2023: 422).

Type: — MYANMAR. Sine loc., O’Brien s.n. (holotype K K 000891017 photo!).

Habitat and phenology in Vietnam: —Creeping epiphyte. Evergreen broad-leaved and mixed forests on granite at elevations of 800–1000 m a.s.l. Very rare. Flowers in May–June.

Distribution: — Vietnam: Kon Tum Province (Kon Ray District). Myanmar, SW China, Thailand, Laos.

Conservation status in Vietnam: —A single known Vietnamese population of this species occurs in a habitat severely disturbed by selective logging. Accordingly, we preliminarily estimate the national conservation status of the species as Critically Endangered (CR) following the criteria B1ab(i–iii)+B2ab(i–iii). The same status was assessed for the species by Jin et al. (2023).

Notes: — Sunipia grandiflora is reported here as a new record for the flora of Vietnam. The presence of this rare species in Vietnam was rather expectable, as it was already known in Laos and southern China. The available data shows that the species is likely to be distributed across almost all territory of the Indochinese Peninsula.

Studied specimens:— VIETNAM. Kon Tum Province: Kon Ray District, Dak Coi Commune, plant has short inflorescence, 3–4 overlapping bract at base, floral bract as long as pedicel with ovary, base of lip with triangular keel, apically with terete/triangular callus, 2 separate pollinaria, flower purple to dark purple, 21 May 2022, Truong Ba Vuong, BV 1492 (photos LE LE01123546 https://en.herbariumle.ru/?t=occ&id=141853) ; same location, 22 May 2022, Truong Ba Vuong, BV 1510 (LE LE01169333 https://en.herbariumle.ru/?t=occ&id=141207) .