Nepenthes hispida

Nepenthes hispida
	An upper pitcher of Nepenthes hispida from Lambir Hills
Conservation status
	; Conservation Dependent (IUCN 2.3)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Order:	Caryophyllales
Family:	Nepenthaceae
Genus:	Nepenthes
Species:	N. hispida
Binomial name
	Nepenthes hispida; Beck (1895)

Last updated April 28, 2024

Description

The stem of N. hispida grows to 6 m in length and 6 mm in diameter. The cylindrical internodes are up to 15 cm long. Leaves are sessile and coriaceous in texture. The lamina is oblanceolate-oblong in morphology and can measure up to 28 cm long and 4 cm wide. The apex of the lamina is acuminate-obtuse and often unequal. The base of the lamina is attenuate, amplexicaul, and often decurrent. Three longitudinal veins run along the lamina on each side of the midrib. Pennate veins are indistinct. Tendrils grow to 15 cm in length.^[3]

The pitchers of N. hispida are rarely more than 15 cm high and 8 cm wide. They are ovoid-ellipsoid in the lower parts and sub-cylindrical in the upper parts. Aerial or upper pitchers are more cylindrical than lower or terrestrial pitchers. Two fringed wings, up to 3 mm wide, run down the front of the pitchers. These wings are often absent in upper pitchers. The opening or mouth of the pitcher is ovate and oblique. The peristome is rounded and up to 12 mm wide. The lid or operculum is ovate-elliptic. An unbranched spur, up to 5 mm long, is inserted at the base of the lid.^[3]

Nepenthes hispida has a racemose inflorescence. The peduncle is up to 5 cm long and 1.5 cm thick. The rachis is attenuate and may grow to 10 cm in length. The partial peduncles, which are up to 8 mm long, are two-flowered at the base only, otherwise one-flowered. Sepals are elliptic and up to 4 mm long. Male and female inflorescences are of similar structure.^[3]

A very dense indumentum of bristle-like, purple-grey hairs covers the stem. A sparser covering of shorter hairs is present on the inflorescence. Hairs on the surfaces of the leaves are apparently caducous, or shed at an early stage of development.^[3]

Distribution and habitat

In Nepenthes of Borneo , Charles Clarke writes: "N. hispida has been collected from a number of localities in northern Sarawak and Brunei, where its distribution overlaps with that of N. hirsuta".^[3] However, in Pitcher Plants of Sarawak , Clarke and Ch'ien Lee state: "Recent observations of populations of N. hirsuta throughout Sarawak suggest that morphological variation in this species is much greater than previously assumed. Accordingly, the only plants that we equate with N. hispida here are those from the Lambir Hills area".^[4]

Nepenthes hispida grows in shady kerangas forest on steep sandstone ridges and is often sympatric with Eugeissona palms.^[3]^[4] The species occurs at elevations of 100 to 800 m.^[3]

Taxonomy

Nepenthes hispida is very similar to the closely related N. hirsuta and some taxonomists contest its status as a separate species.^[6]^[7] It is also similar to N. macrovulagris , from which it differs in several aspects of pitcher and leaf morphology.

In his 1928 monograph, "The Nepenthaceae of the Netherlands Indies", B. H. Danser reduced N. hispida to a synonym of N. hirsuta, writing "N. hispida Beck is placed among the synonyms [of N. hirsuta] on the authority of Macfarlane, though the description gives another idea".^[8] Matthew Jebb and Martin Cheek restored N. hispida to species status in 1997, citing the amplexicaul-decurrent leaf base and indumentum as significant features that distinguish it from N. hirsuta.^[9] It has been suggested that N. hirsuta and N. hispida are extreme variants of the same species, as there exist intergrades between both taxa.^[1]

Matthew Jebb and Martin Cheek suggest that N. hispida is related to N. philippinensis , a species endemic to Palawan in the Philippines.^[10]^[11]

In his Carnivorous Plant Database, taxonomist Jan Schlauer treats N. hispida as a heterotypic synonym of N. hirsuta .^[7]

Related Research Articles

Nepenthes villosa, or the villose pitcher-plant, is a tropical pitcher plant endemic to Mount Kinabalu and neighbouring Mount Tambuyukon in northeastern Borneo. It grows at higher elevations than any other Bornean Nepenthes species, occurring at elevations of over 3,200 m (10,500 ft). Nepenthes villosa is characterised by its highly developed and intricate peristome, which distinguishes it from the closely related N. edwardsiana and N. macrophylla.

Nepenthes tentaculata, or the fringed pitcher-plant, is a tropical pitcher plant with a wide distribution across Borneo and Sulawesi. It grows at altitudes of 400–2550 m.

Nepenthes hirsuta, the hairy pitcher-plant, is a tropical pitcher plant endemic to Borneo. It is characterised by an indumentum of thick brown hairs, which is even present on the inflorescence. Pitchers are mostly green throughout with some having red blotches on the inside surfaces.

Nepenthes edwardsiana, or the splendid pitcher-plant, is a carnivorous tropical pitcher plant endemic to Mount Kinabalu and neighbouring Mount Tambuyukon in Sabah, Malaysian Borneo. It is considered one of the most spectacular of all Nepenthes, producing some of the largest pitchers and the most highly developed peristome ribs of any species in the genus.

Nepenthes fusca, or the dusky pitcher-plant, is a tropical pitcher plant endemic to Borneo. It is found throughout a wide altitudinal range and is almost always epiphytic in nature, primarily growing in mossy forest.

Nepenthes stenophylla, or the narrow-leaved pitcher-plant, is a tropical pitcher plant endemic to Borneo. The species produces attractive funnel-shaped pitchers up to 25 cm high. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. Nepenthes stenophylla belongs to the loosely defined "N. maxima complex", which also includes, among other species, N. boschiana, N. chaniana, N. epiphytica, N. eymae, N. faizaliana, N. fusca, N. klossii, N. maxima, N. platychila, and N. vogelii.

Nepenthes klossii is a tropical pitcher plant endemic to New Guinea.

Nepenthes pilosa is a tropical pitcher plant endemic to Borneo. It is characterised by a dense indumentum of long yellow-brown hairs. Pitchers have a distinctive hook-shaped appendage on the underside of the lid. The specific epithet derives from the Latin word pilosus, meaning "hairy".

Nepenthes mollis, or the velvet pitcher-plant, is a tropical pitcher plant species natives to Kalimantan, Borneo. It used to be known only from a single dried herbarium specimen and is the sole recognised species in the genus Nepenthes of which the pitchers are unknown. In 2019 Global Wildlife Conservation announced the rediscovery of the species.

<i>Nepenthes macrophylla</i> Species of pitcher plant from Borneo

Nepenthes macrophylla, the large-leaved pitcher-plant, is a tropical pitcher plant known only from a very restrictive elevation on Mount Trusmadi in Sabah, Malaysian Borneo.

Nepenthes hurrelliana is a tropical pitcher plant endemic to Borneo, where it has been recorded from northern Sarawak, southwestern Sabah, and Brunei. It is of putative hybrid origin; its two original parent species are thought to be N. fusca and N. veitchii. A thick indumentum of rusty-brown hairs covers the entire plant, a characteristic presumably inherited from the latter.

Nepenthes murudensis, or the Murud pitcher-plant, is a tropical pitcher plant endemic to Mount Murud in Borneo, after which it is named. It is of putative hybrid origin: its two original parent species are thought to be N. reinwardtiana and N. tentaculata.

Nepenthes faizaliana is a tropical pitcher plant endemic to the limestone cliffs of Gunung Mulu National Park in Sarawak, Borneo. It is thought to be most closely related to N. boschiana.

<i>Nepenthes mapuluensis</i> Tropical pitcher plant endemic to Borneo

Nepenthes mapuluensis, the Mapulu pitcher-plant, is a species of tropical pitcher plant native to East Kalimantan, Borneo. It is known only from a restricted geographical range and is listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List.

Nepenthes muluensis, or the Mulu pitcher-plant, is a tropical pitcher plant endemic to Borneo. It grows in highland habitats at elevations of 1700 to 2400 m above sea level.

<i>Nepenthes benstonei</i> Species of pitcher plant from Peninsular Malaysia

Nepenthes benstonei is a tropical pitcher plant endemic to Peninsular Malaysia, where it grows at elevations of 150–1350 m above sea level. The specific epithet benstonei honours botanist Benjamin Clemens Stone, who was one of the first to collect the species.

Nepenthes eustachya is a tropical pitcher plant endemic to Sumatra, where it grows from sea level to an elevation of 1600 m. The specific epithet eustachya, formed from the Greek words eu (true) and stachys (spike), refers to the racemose structure of the inflorescence.

Nepenthes gracillima is a highland Nepenthes pitcher plant species, native to Peninsular Malaysia.

Nepenthes beccariana is a tropical pitcher plant. The species was described in 1908 by John Muirhead Macfarlane based on a specimen collected from the island of Nias, which lies off the western coast of Sumatra. It appears to be closely related to both N. longifolia and N. sumatrana, and the former is possibly a heterotypic synonym of this taxon.

A skeletal revision of <i>Nepenthes</i> (Nepenthaceae)

"A skeletal revision of Nepenthes (Nepenthaceae)" is a monograph by Matthew Jebb and Martin Cheek on the tropical pitcher plants of the genus Nepenthes. It was published in the May 1997 issue of the botanical journal Blumea. The work represented the first revision of the entire genus since John Muirhead Macfarlane's 1908 monograph. Jebb and Cheek's revision was based on "collaborative work by both authors since 1984, largely on herbarium specimens, but including fieldwork in New Guinea, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Madagascar". It was a precursor to their more exhaustive 2001 monograph, "Nepenthaceae".

References

1 2 3 Clarke, C.M.; Cantley, R.; Nerz, J.; Rischer, H.; Witsuba, A. (2000). "Nepenthes hispida". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2000. IUCN: e.T39666A10249804. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2000.RLTS.T39666A10249804.en .
↑ (in German) Beck, G. 1895. Die Gattung Nepenthes. Wiener Illustrirte Garten-Zeitung20(3–6): 96–107, 141–150, 182–192, 217–229.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Clarke, C.M. 1997. Nepenthes of Borneo . Natural History Publications (Borneo), Kota Kinabalu.
1 2 3 Clarke, C.M. & C.C. Lee 2004. Pitcher Plants of Sarawak . Natural History Publications (Borneo), Kota Kinabalu.
↑ McPherson, S.R. 2009. Pitcher Plants of the Old World . 2 volumes. Redfern Natural History Productions, Poole.
↑ Clarke, C.M. 2006. Introduction. In: Danser, B.H. The Nepenthaceae of the Netherlands Indies . Natural History Publications (Borneo), Kota Kinabalu. pp. 1–15.
1 2 Schlauer, J. N.d. Nepenthes hispida Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine . Carnivorous Plant Database.
↑ Danser, B.H. 1928. The Nepenthaceae of the Netherlands Indies. Bulletin du Jardin Botanique de Buitenzorg, Série III, 9(3–4): 249–438.
↑ Jebb, M.H.P. & M. Cheek 1997. A skeletal revision of Nepenthes (Nepenthaceae). Blumea42(1): 1-106.
↑ Cheek, M.R. & M.H.P. Jebb 1999. Nepenthes (Nepenthaceae) in Palawan, Philippines. Kew Bulletin54(4): 887–895. doi : 10.2307/4111166
↑ Schlauer, J. 2000. "Literature Reviews" (PDF). Carnivorous Plant Newsletter 29(2): 53.