Philodendron panamense (Araceae)
Usually hemiepiphytic; stem appressed-climbing, to 1.3 m long, sap reddish, sticky; internodes short, semiglossy, 2.5--4 cm diam., sometimes longer than broad, dark green; roots several per node, drying 2--4 mm diam., dark brown, semiglossy, sparsely scaly; cataphylls 18--20 cm long, sharply 1-ribbed to sharply 2-ribbed, green to whitish, drying light brown, persisting briefly more or less intact, eventually fibrous, sometimes persisting for a time, eventually deciduous LEAVES: petioles erect-spreading, (23)34--70(79) cm long, 4--13 mm diam., terete to subterete, sometimes weakly flattened or with narrow flattened rib adaxially, sometimes weakly and narrowly sulcate at base, dark green, sometimes pink at base, surface sparsely to densely pale greenish striate or striate-lineate, minutely grooved upon drying, geniculum to 6.5 cm long, sheath 1--4 cm long, usually inconspicuous, to 10 cm long when subtending an inflorescense; blades broadly triangular-ovate or more infrequently ovate, subcoriaceous, semiglossy, moderately bicolorous, abruptly acuminate, sometimes acute at apex (the acumen sometimes inrolled, to 4 mm long), deeply cordate at base, 32--72 cm long, 24--38 cm wide (1.2--2.3 times longer than wide, averaging 1.5), ((0.3)0.7--1.4 times longer than petiole, averaging 1.07), broadest near point of petiole attachment; upper surface dark green and glossy, drying semiglossy, dark gray-brown to olive-green, often somewhat blackened, lower surface slighty paler, semiglossy; margins sometimes broadly undulate; anterior lobe 25--41(58) cm long, (15)20--36(41) cm wide (1.9--4 times longer than posterior lobes); posterior lobes 7.5--18 cm long, 4.5--17.7 cm wide, rounded to broadly rounded to broadly obtuse; sinus hippocrepiform to parabolic (arcuate on younger blades), 4--12 cm deep; midrib broadly sunken, concolorous or paler than surface above, weakly asperous, thicker than broad, matte, sometimes short-white-striate, darker than surface below; basal veins 5--8 per side, with 1 free to base or nearly so, third and higher order veins coalesced 4--7 cm long; posterior rib naked for 2--3 cm long; primary lateral veins 4--7 per side, departing midrib at a 55--65º angle, spreading to a 65--75º angle, usually curved down gradually before merging with the midrib, narrowly sunken, concolorous or paler than surface above, convex, matte, slightly darker than surface below; interprimary veins narrowly sunken above; minor veins distinct, darker than surface below, arising from both the midrib and primary lateral veins; secretory ducts moderately visible on lower dried surface, alternating with minor veins. INFLORESCENCES more or less erect, 4(6) per axil; peduncle (4.5)6.5--20 (most more than 15) cm long, 4--12 mm diam., pale green, strongly white lineate, slightly to moderately bent just below the spathe; spathe 10.5--18.5 cm long, (0.6--1.7(2.7) times longer than peduncle), acute at apex; spathe blade white outside, (opening 4--7.5 cm wide), pale green, moderately glossy to pale-punctate inside; spathe tube ellipsoid, medium green, densely pale-speckled outside, 6--9 cm long, to 4.5 cm diam., pale green, moderately glossy to pale-punctate inside, spadix sessile; protruding forward at anthesis, 12--16 cm long, broadest at upper two-thirds constricted to ca. 1.5 cm diam. between sterile staminate portion and fertile staminate portion; pistillate portion pale green, cylindrical, 3--6.5 cm long in front, 2.7--3.6 cm long in back, 1.3--1.7 mm diam. at apex, 1.3--1.9 mm diam. at middle, 1.1--1.5 mm wide at base; staminate portion 10.5--14.7 cm long; fertile staminate portion creamy white, more or less clavate, 1.5--1.8 cm diam. at base, 1.3--2 cm diam. at middle, 9--12 mm diam. ca. 1 cm from apex, about as broad as the pistillate portion; sterile staminate portion 1--1.9 cm diam.; pistils 2.1--3.4 mm long, 1--1.6 mm diam.; ovary 6(7)-locular,1.5--3.1 mm long, 1--1.6 mm diam., with axile placentation, walls sometimes embedded with granular, crystal-like particles; locules 1.5--3 mm long, 0.5--0.7 mm diam.; ovules 20--31 per locule, 2-seriate, 0.3 mm long; funicle 0.2 mm long, adnate to lower part of partition, style 0.5--0.6 mm long, 1.3--1.6 mm diam., similar to style type B; style apex rounded or domed; stigma truncate, hemispheroid, 1--1.3 mm diam., 0.3--0.5 mm high, covering entire style apex; the androecium truncate, prismatic, oblong, margins acutely and regularly 4--6-sided, 0.9--1 mm long, 0.7--2.2 mm diam. at apex; thecae oblong to cylindrical, 0.3--0.5 mm wide, more or less parallel to one another, contiguous; sterile staminate flowers bluntly, irregularly 4--6-sided, 1.9--4.1 mm long, 1.1--2 mm wide. INFRUCTESCENCE with seeds many per berry, white, narrowly cylindrical, 1.3 mm long, sticky. JUVENILE petioles terete, sheathing broadly, for 1/2 to 3/4 its petiole length, acute to rounded, eventually weakly to strongly cordate; blades broadest at the middle.
Endemic to Panama, but it is likely to occur also in adjacent Colombia.
In Panama, it occurs in Tropical moist forest on both slopes of the Canal Zone, and Premontane wet forest and Tropical wet forest in Panamá, Colón, and Darién Provinces.