Nepenthes hirsuta

Nepenthes hirsuta

Synonymy

Nepenthes hirsuta Hook.f. in de Candolle, Prodr. 17: 99. 1873 sec. Cheek & Jebb 2001
    • Holotype: Borneo, Lawas River, H. Low s.n. (K)
  • =Nepenthes hirsuta var. glabrata Macfarl. in Engler, Pflanzenr. IV. 111 (Heft 36): 50. 1908 syn. sec. Cheek & Jebb 2001
    • Holotype: Borneo, Sarawak, Lobb 92 (K)
  • =Nepenthes leptochila Danser in Bull. Jard. Bot. Buitenzorg, sér. 3, 9: 319 (428, f. 13). 1928 syn. sec. Cheek & Jebb 2001
    • Isotype: Borneo, E Kalimantan, G. Djempanga, Sep 1912, Amdjah 730 (BO)
    • Lectotype: Borneo, E Kalimantan, G. Djempanga, Sep 1912, Amdjah 730 (BO: sh. 1711-26)
    • Isotype: Borneo, E Kalimantan, G. Djempanga, Sep 1912, Amdjah 730 (K)
  • Nepenthes hirsuta var. typica Macfarl. in Engler, Pflanzenr. IV. 111 (Heft 36): 50. 1908, nom. inval., syn. sec. Cheek & Jebb 2001

Other sources

Clarke, C. M. 1997: Nepenthes of Borneo. – Kota Kinabalu: Natural History Publications: 93, f. 61-62
Hooker, J.D. 1996 – In: Phillipps, A. & Lamb, A.L., Pitcher Plants of Borneo: 92, f. 50
Danser, B. H. 1928: – Bull. Jard. Bot. Buitenzorg, sér. 3, 9: 306, f. 8
Jebb, M. H. P. & Cheek, M. R. 1997: A skeletal revision of Nepenthes. – Blumea 42(1): 1-106: 47
Phillipps, A. & Lamb, A.L. 1988: – Nature Malaysiana 13(4): 16

Description

Terrestrial climber 1-4 m tall. Stem terete, 4-5(-8) mm diam., internodes of short stems 0.5-1 cm long, of climbing stems 2-4.5(-10) cm long. Leaves coriaceous, subsessile; leaves of short shoots and rosettes oblanceolate, 10-19 by 3-5.5 cm wide, the lowermost 1/8-1/10 narrowed to a winged, poorly defined petiole, leaf bases shortly sheathing, amplexicaul, encircling the entire stem circumference; leaves of climbing shoots narrowly elliptic, 18-27(-28.5) by 4-6 cm wide, tapering to an acute apex, the basal 1/5-1/6 (i.e. up to 4-5 cm long), usually narrowed to c. 1 cm wide and resembling a winged petiole, base sheathing, encircling c. 1/3 the stem circumference, upper-most leaves smaller, 6-10(-14) by 1.6(-3.2) cm, subsessile. Longitudinal nerves 3-5 on each side of the midrib in the outer half, conspicuous above and below. Pennate nerves numerous, held at ± 90° from the midrib, inconspicuous, not reaching the marginal nerve. Lower pitchers ovoid or ellipsoid, tapering into a shortly cylindrical upper part, 11-18 cm long, 5-6(-7.5) cm wide at the base, tapering to 2.5-4(-5) cm wide below the peristome, with two fringed wings 2.5-3(-6) mm broad, the fringed elements 3-6(-15) mm long, (1-)2-2.5(-3) mm; mouth ovate, apex long-acuminate, oblique; the peristome cylindrical to slightly flattened, 3-5(-15) mm wide, with pronounced ribs 0.25-0.5 mm apart, 0.1-0.2 mm high, outer edge rarely slightly sinuate in largest pitchers, inner surface with broad stiff, slightly forward curved teeth 0.3-1 (-2) mm long; column short and broad, the peristome teeth expanded in two protuberant ridges; lid broadly to narrowly ovate or elliptic, 2.5-4.5(-6.2) by 2.7-3.2 cm, apex rounded, base shallowly cordate, lower surface without appendages, with several large circular or elliptic crater-like glands along the midline 0.3-0.5 mm long and numerous smaller, circular ones 0.2-0.1 mm diam., towards the margin, absent at the edge; spur simple 4-15 mm long. Upper pitchers as the lower, but much less commonly produced, cylindrical, rarely ovoid-cylindrical or infundibuliform-cylindrical, 10-15.5 by 2.5-4.7 cm, with wings 0.5-4 mm wide, usually fringed, the fringed elements up to 13 mm long, 3-4 mm apart; peristome 2.5-5 mm wide; lid ovate or ovate-oblong, 2-4.7 by 1.8-2.7 cm. Male inflorescence (18-)22-25 by 3 cm; peduncle 10.5-12 cm, 2 mm diam. at base; partial peduncles 2-flowered, 35-65, 1-3 mm long, bract 0.25-0.5 mm long, inconspicuous; pedicels (4-)5-8 mm long; tepals elliptic, (3.75-)5-5.5 by 2-2.5 mm, apex rounded; androphore (3.5-)6 mm long; anther head 1.25 by 1.25 mm. Fruits with valves 35-42 by 3.5-4 mm. Seeds filiform, 25 by 0.25 mm. Indumentum of stems, lower surface of midribs and inflorescences densely, less usually feebly, substrigose to pilose, with fragile, but not caducous, brown, subappressed, stiff, simple (rarely a few 1-3-branched) hairs (0.5-)1-2 mm long, hair bases swollen; lower leaf blade with sessile red glands very sparsely scattered with patent simple hairs c. 0.5 mm long. Colour of lower pitchers green or grey-green splashed with red; upper pitchers always green; tepals red with black spots on inner surface; androphore maroon; anthers white.A

Notes

Nepenthes hirsuta, on account of the shape of its pitchers and its conspicuous dark, pilose indumentum is likely to be mistaken for one of the Regiae (the N. maxima group of species). It can be distinguished by the subsessile, not strongly petiolate leaves and the lower surface of the lid, which lacks an appendage. Nepenthes hirsuta varies from long-hairy to short-hairy and densely to weakly hirsute, but some hairs are always present though they are brittle and easily removed by abrasion. Hairs are never found on the upper surface of herbarium specimens, for example. Nepenthes leptochila is a weakly hairy variant, but not glabrous as has been thought. Inspection of young shoots on the type number of N. leptochila at BO shows hair bases and a few remnant hairs on the stems.
Nepenthes hirsuta is widespread and common in northern Borneo, but its three seemingly close relatives have more restricted distributions. Nepenthes macrovulgaris is apparently confined to ultramafic soils in Sabah, N. hispida occurs on sandstone in Sarawak, near the border with Brunei and Sabah and N. philippinensis grows on ultramafic soils in Palawan.A
The page number 29 for the protologue in IPNI (acc. 2017-3-18) is wrong. B

Distribution (General)

Borneo: Sarawak, Brunei, Sabah, and Kalimantan.A

Habitat

Submontane forest, sometimes on ridgetops, often on sandstone; 500-1100 m.A

Bibliography

A. Cheek, M. R. & Jebb, M. H. P. 2001: Flora Malesiana - Nepenthaceae, Series I, Volume 15. – Leiden: Nationaal Herbarium Nederland, Universiteit Leiden branch
B. Berendsohn, W. G. & al. 2018: Using the EDIT Platform for Cybertaxonomy to prepare and publish a treatment for the Caryophyllales Network: an online synthesis of the Nepenthaceae. – Willdenowia 48: 335-344. http://doi.org/10.3372/wi.48.48301

Specimens

CountryDateCollector + collecting numberHerbariaTypeScanDerivatives
Low, H. s.n.K
Citation: Borneo, Lawas River, H. Low s.n.

Specimen summary: K
Holotype of Nepenthes hirsuta Hook.f.

Lobb 92K
Citation: Borneo, Sarawak, Lobb 92

Specimen summary: K
Holotype of Nepenthes hirsuta var. glabrata Macfarl.

1912-09Amdjah 730BO(2), K
Citation: Borneo, E Kalimantan, G. Djempanga, Sep 1912, Amdjah 730 (BO sh. 1711-26)

Specimen summary: BO
Isotype of Nepenthes leptochila Danser

Specimen summary: BO sh. 1711-26
Lectotype of Nepenthes leptochila Danser

Specimen summary: K
Isotype of Nepenthes leptochila Danser