Nepenthes muluensis

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Nepenthes muluensis

Description

Terrestrial climber 1-3 m tall. Leaves thinly coriaceous, sessile, glossy above, those of rosettes with bases semi-amplexicaul, those of climbing stems narrowly oblanceolate-oblong to lanceolate-oblong, 4.2-6.5 by 1.1-1.7(-2) cm, apex acute to rounded, not peltate, base slightly attenuate, clasping the stem for 1/3-1/2 its circumference, not decurrent. Flower pale green maturing brown. Fruit with valves elliptic, (13-)15-19 by 5.5-7 mm. Fruit like two pyramids end to end, upper half yellowish, lower half red.” (Lewis 354). Seeds c. 90 per fruit, fusiform, 10-12 by 0.6-1 mm.

Distribution

Asia-Tropical: Borneo present (Sarawak present), Batu Lawi present, Mt Mulu present, Mt Murud present, Tama Abu range present
Borneo: Sarawak (Mt Mulu, Mt Murud, Batu Lawi, and the Tama Abu Range).

Ecology

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Taxonomy

1 Nepenthes muluensis is a distinct, slender species not easily confused in the climbing stems and upper pitchers with the only other small highland species in Borneo, N. tentaculata. Nepenthes muluensis differs in its non-perfoliate-adnate leaves, entire, short spur and orbicular to transversely elliptic lid. The lid and peristome are usually a delicate whitish green or white in colour, contrasting strikingly with the pitcher which is predominantly purple and only lightly blotched with white. 2. The lower pitchers are reported by Clarke in as being almost identical with those of N. tentaculata, with bristles around the edge of the upper surface of the lid. Thus we conclude that the purported hybrid between N. tentaculata and N. muluensis, N.sarawakiensis from Mulu, is probably merely a young plant of N. muluensis. Whether the leaves of the short stems are perfo-liate-adnate, as characteristic of that species group, is not reported, but this species pre-sumably belongs here. The few-flowered, diminutive, ebracteate raceme and the inconspicuously ridged peristome of N. muluensis are all characters seen in the N. tentaculata group. Unfortunately all specimens available to us show only the climbing stems and upper pitchers. This is also the case with N. glabrata of Sulawesi to which N. muluen-sis is extremely similar, sharing many unusual characters not otherwise seen in the N. tentaculata group, such as the plants being glabrous in most parts, in the white lid and white and red pitcher, in the orbicular to transversely elliptic lid with its unusual nervation, the short, entire spur, the conspicuous bordered nectar glands and the androphore, being hairy at the base. Nepenthes glabrata differs in its pitchers being more broadly cylindrical, lacking a campanulate base and in having wings twice as broad as in N. muluensis. Its inflorescence indumentum is white, not coppery, and its spur is hairy. Moreover its leaves are twice as long as those of N. muluensis and with only 1 (not 3 or 4) pairs of longitudinal nerves.

Citation

Jebb & Cheek 1997 – In: Blumea: 66
Phillipps & A.L. Lamb 1996: Pitcher Plants of Borneo: 115: f. 61 & 62