Tas. XXI. 
ONCIDIUM INSLEAYI: 
MR. INSLEAY’S ONCIDIUMN. 
Onxcrptum Insleayi; pseudo-bulbis ovatis compressis diphyllis, foliis coriaceis apice recurvis racemo 
simplici erecto rigido brevioribus, sepalis petalisque oblongis subeequalibus undulatis infimis basi connatis, 
labello obovato retuso basi sagittato disci tuberculo apice depresso dilatato bilobo utrinque in medio uniden- 
tato lamelldque unica retrofracté aucto, columne alis cirrhatis. Lindl. in Bot. Reg. Misc. 1840. No. 21. 
Description. 
PSEUDO-BULBS two or three inches long, ovate, compressed, with the edges somewhat sharp. 
LEAVES of a bluish green hue, with numerous very minute black dots on the under side, from six to 
ten inches long, leathery, recurved at the extremities, two on each pseudo-bulb, shorter than the scape. 
ScaPe rigid, erect, a foot or more high, bearing from six to twelve flowers. SEPALS and PETALS 
nearly equal, oblong, waved at the edges, the lower ones connate at the base, an inch or more long, of 
a light yellowish green, richly barred and spotted with bright chesnut. L1p of a bright yellow, its 
base and margin blotched with numerous patches of reddish brown,—in form obovate, arrow-shaped 
at the base, and furnished with a tubercle which spreads itself out into two divergent lobes, and 
which, at its middle, is armed with a tooth on either side, pointing in an opposite direction to the 
reversed lamella at its base. Cotumw yellow, bearing two speckled cirrhi, resembling the antenne 
of an insect, and curving inwards. 
FOR the introduction of this charming Oncidium we are indebted to Mr. Barker, in whose col- 
lection at Springfield it flowered in the spring of 1840, and continued in great beauty for a length of time. 
It is a native of Mexico, but is, probably, a scarce plant there, having been met with only by Mr. 
Barxer’s collector, although from the resemblance of its leaves and pseudo-bulbs to those of Odontoglos- 
sum grande, the latter species has, in many instances, been confounded with it.* In the colouring of the 
flowers it is not unlike Oncidiwm papilio, as also in the singular processes which are attached to the 
column, and which closely resemble the antenn@ of various insects. The plant was named by Mr. Barker 
after his gardener, Mr. Instray, to whose skill and care the collection at Springfield owes much of its 
celebrity. 
The grotesque figures in the Vignette are notable specimens of the dresses worn by the Mexicans at 
certain of their feasts. 
“ Hoc te 
Crede modo insanum; nihilo ut sapientior ille 
Qui te deridet, caudam trahat.”—Hor. Sar. ii. 
* Vide Remarks under Tab. XXIV. 
