Vriesea saxicola is closely related to V. hoehneana, see JBS 60(1)
- Vriesea saxicola is only known from the type-region, which includes the nearby Serra de São José facing the town of Tiradentes (see figure 7 in Leme, 2007). Its holotype was collected in 1895 in the lower parts of the Serra do Lenheiro, at about 900 m elevation. Today this species is confined to the higher parts of the mountains, at above 1,100 m elevation, where the vegetation of Campos Rupestres is well preserved, in contrast to the lower parts, which are heavily affected by frequent fire and by the expansion of the urban zone.
- Vriesea saxicola grows as a saxicole in Campos Rupestres vegetation, in the domain of the Cerrado, usually in sites more or less protected from the direct sun light, like near shrubby vegetation or close to the protection of the natural, very irregular rock sculptures of the terrain. It can be found living side by side with Billbergia elegans Mart. ex Schult. & Schult. f., Cryptanthus regius (at Serra do Lenheiro), C. tiradentesensis (at Serra de São José), Dyckia sp., and Tillandsia streptocarpa Baker. In contrast, V. hoehneana is a typical inhabitant of the Campos de Altitude vegetation, in the domain of the Atlantic Forest, from Santa Catarina to Rio de Janeiro, crossing the border of Minas Gerais state in the region of Lima Duarte, as observed in the State Park of Ibitipoca (Leme & Marigo, 1993), reaching the region of the State Park of Itacolomi, Ouro Preto (Coser, 2008). —SeeSmith 1968a
