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Araceae
Philodendron albisuccus Croat
SUMMARY
Hemiepiphytic; stem more or less appressed-climbing, to 75 cm long, to 2.8 cm diam. sap chalky white; internodes short, usually sparsely covered with cataphyll fibers, 2-3 cm long, 2.8 cm diam., dark green; roots brownish, few per node, epidermis smooth to flaking and peeling; cataphylls thin, to 40 cm long, weakly 1-ribbed to sharply 2-ribbed, sparsely short-lineate, persisting as thin, pale fibers at upper nodes, then deciduous; LEAVES: petioles 51-72 cm long, 3-7 mm diam., erect-spreading, subterete, dark green, weakly flattened from near base to middle, obtusely sulcate at the base adaxially, surface semiglossy; blades narrow ovate, subcoriaceous, splitting, long-acuminate at apex (the acumen inrolled), cordate at base, 50--66 cm long, 24.5-42 cm wide (1.6--2 times longer than wide), (ca. about equal in length to petiole), broadest just below point of petiole attachment, upper surface dark green, semiglossy, lower surface semiglossy, moderately paler, drying yellow-green; anterior lobe 37-48(54.5) cm long, 23.1-27.4(42.4) cm wide (4.2-4.4 times longer than posterior lobes); posterior lobes 8.5-11.5(16.5) cm long, 9.7-12(18.5) cm wide; sinus hippocrepiform; midrib flat, concolorous above, bluntly acute, slightly paler than surface below; basal veins 3-5 per side, with 1 free to base, third and higher order veins coalesced 0.5-2 cm long, the fifth and sixth veins sometimes coalesced to 5 cm long; posterior rib naked, raised; primary lateral veins (4)6-7(8) per side, departing midrib at a 60-65º angle, sunken above, raised to convex below; interprimary veins darker than surface; minor veins arising from both the midrib and primary lateral veins; lesser veins obscure to visible. INFLORESCENCES 1 per axil; peduncle (3.7)7-12 cm long, 3-3.5 mm diam., pale green; spathe semiglossy, 13.5-14.5 cm long, (1.2-1.8 times longer than peduncle), weakly constricted above the tube, green throughout, pale yellow-green (greenish brown post-anthesis) within; spathe tube densely short pale lineate outside, 5-7 cm long; spadix 12 cm long at anthesis; pistillate portion 4.3 cm long in front, 3 cm long in back, 8 mm diam. midway, 7 mm diam. at apex; staminate portion to 10 cm long; fertile staminate portion to 9 mm diam. toward apex, somewhat narrower just above the sterile portion, to 5 mm diam. 1 cm from apex; sterile staminate portion 9 mm diam.; pistils 6-6.3 mm long, 1.8-2.5 mm diam., ovary 5-6-locular, with axile placentation; ovules 2-seriate, style similar to style type B; style apex flat; stigma subdiscoid. INFRUCTESCENCE 6.4 cm long, 3 cm diam.; berries white; seeds 18-20 per locule.