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Araceae
Philodendron standleyi Grayum
SUMMARY
Typically appressed-climbing epiphyte on trunks of trees (may grow more loosely over shrubs, rocks, or banks in juvenile stage), climbing to at least 10 m, usually fertile at least 2.5 m above ground, the fertile branches sometimes swooping- divergent. Internodes (1.5-) 3.5-10.5 cm long, 0.5-1.2 (-2.0+) cm wide, olive- green to gray-green, matte to glossy, often slightly glaucous or velvety, when cut oozing a red (Hammel et al. 15088) to rust-orange (Haber 7905) sap and described as "sweetly aromatic'' (Croat 41358), drying yellowish brown to mid-brown, coarsely sulcate, the epidermis brittle; roots abundant at distal nodes, to ca. 1.5 mm in diameter. LEAVES: Petiole (13.6-) 18.9-37.8 (-42.0) cm long, P/L= (0.70-) 0.74-1.05 (-1.13), matte to glossy, with scattered, short, ± raised, dark green lineations especially aerially, sheathed (75-) 81-97% , the sheath involute to erect proximally, erect to horizontally splayed distally, the free portion asymmetrically prolonged by 0.30-0.65 cm; unsheathed portion of petiole (0.9-) 2.0-4.6 (-7.1) cm long, D- to Cshaped or oval in section, appearing somewhat geniculate distally, bluntly triangular, flattened or shallowly sulcate to V-sulcate above, the margins obtuse to rounded. Lamina (17.6-) 22.1-40.3 (-54.8) cm long, (7.3-) 10.3-21.5 (-27.2) cm wide, L/W= (1.38-) 1.59-2.38, IQI=(2-) 4-8 (-11), thinly coriaceous to subcoriaceous, matte to (more commonly) glossy on both sides, virtually concolorous to moderately bicolored, ovate to broadly lanceolate, narrowly to broadly elliptical or (very rarely) obovate (broadest at or below the middle, or very rarely somewhat above) , abruptly to ± gradually short- to moderately long-acuminate apically [the acumen (0.5-) 1.2- 1.6 cm long], narrowly to (much more commonly) broadly cuneate, rounded, truncate, or (less frequently) subauriculate or subcordate basally (and often circulate at the petiole apex); midrib broadly sulcate to flat and often paler than surface above, narrowly convex and slightly paler below; primary lateral veins (5-) 8-15 (-21) per side, 0.2-4.4 (-5.1) cm apart, sunken above, convex below, with interprimaries visible; minor veins obscurely visible and slightly darker below; abaxial laminar surface drying virtually smooth to moderately or densely and uniformly low-granular (larger-leaved specimens may be papillate along the primary veins), with the reticulate veins not evident (except distally and marginally); white stitching not visible (or, rarely, with long white stitches following primary lateral veins); resin canals usually obscurely to prominently visible paralleling tertiary veins and about halfway between them; adaxial surface virtually smooth or (most commonly) moderately to extensively granular or alveolate, especially near veins, frequently with scattered bare streaks, without reticulate veins over most of surface; white stitching rare to abundant, often very short and dotlike, sometimes in lines; resin canals not evident, except sometimes distally. INFLORESCENCES solitary or paired; cataphylls frequently present, (4.9-) 6.9-11.6 (-17.4) cm long, 0.5-1.5 cm wide, lanceolate, prominently 2-keeled; peduncle (2.3-) 3.4-7.1 (-8.6) cm long, P/S=(0.24-) 0.26-0.51 (-0.60), subterete, finely to coarsely greenish striate; spathe at anthesis (10.2-) 15.0-18.3 (-22.1) cm long, 1.3-2.9 (-3,4) cm wide, externally light green to greenish white, yellow-green, cream-yellow or cream proximally and becoming coarsely dark-green- striate, cream-colored distally (may be somewhat beige toward margins) , internally greenish white and sometimes reddish flecked proximity, cream-colored distally; spathe drying uniformly and ± densely granular and usually conspicuously whitish lineate externally, with resin canals evident, internally virtually smooth to uniformly and rather densely granular or low-granular, with longitudinal secretory striations in basal 3/4 to 7/8; acumen of spathe 0.2-1.2 (-1.5) cm long. Stipe of spadix 0.4-1.5 (-2.7) cm long; spadix 9.0-15.3 (-16.9) cm long, the axis pink internally (Haber & Bello 7905), the fertile male portion (0.5-) 0.8-1.0 (-1.2) cm wide, cream-colored or white, slightly arched forward at female receptivity; sterile male zone 0.7-1.3 cm long; fertile female portion of spadix 2.4-5.1 (-5.9) cm long (to 7.7+ cm in fruit), F/S=(0.24-) 0.27-0.35 (-0.37), 0.7-1.0 cm wide (to 2.5+ cm in fruit), pale yellowish to yellowish green; fertile male flowers 0.9-1.7 mm long, 0.7-1.8 (-2.4) mm wide, irregularly polygonal, columnar or slightly anvil-shaped; intermediate sterile male flowers 1.25-1.80 mm long, 0.9-2.4 mm wide, anvil- or ± mushroom-shaped; female flowers 1.5-2.1 (-2.9) mm long, 0.6-1.1 (-1.4) mm wide, the stylar canals 4-6. INFRUCTESCENCE: Color of ripe fruits unknown. Seeds 0.9-1.1 mm long, 0.25-0.30 mm wide, dark purple (Croat 66567), straight to slightly curved or bent, finely striate with the striae minutely cancellate, drying dark brown and glossy.