Rhaphidophora todayensis K.Krause

Moderate to large, rather robust, semipachycaul homeophyllous liane unknown ultimate height; seedling stage and pre-adult plants not observed; adult shoot architecture not completely known but based on available material seemingly comprised of clinging, elongated, branched, non-flowering stems with scattered leaves and short, free, sympodial, apically densely leafy flowering stems; stems terete in cross-section, with prophyll, cataphyll and petiolar sheath fibre, internodes up to 4 cm diam., separated large, straight, leaf scars; flagellate foraging stems not observed; roots not observed; LEAVES spiro-distichous on free shoots; cataphylls and prophylls thickly soft-coriaceous, quickly drying and degrading into dense fibres, these soon falling (?); petiole deeply grooved, 31.5-45 x 0.5-1.5 cm, minutely pubescent and appearing greyish in nature, apical and basal geniculum moderately prominent, apical geniculum minutely pubescent; petiolar sheath moderately prominent, extending to the apical geniculum, swiftly drying and degrading into sparse, fibres; lamina entire, minutely pubescent abaxially, especially along the primary veins when young, 31.5-51 x 14.7-20 cm, thinly coriaceous to subchartaceous, base oblique, major side obtuse, minor side acute, slightly decurrent, apex acute to acuminate; midrib prominently raised and pubescent abaxially, ± sunken adaxially; primary venation pinnate, raised abaxially and slightly raised adaxially, pubescent in younger leaves, indumentum mostly shed in older leaves; interprimaries subparallel to primaries, much less prominent, slightly raised abaxially and adaxially; secondary venation reticulate, slightly raised abaxially, ± invisible adaxially; INFLORESCENCE 3 to 5 together, the whole subtended by a fully developed foliage leaf and each inflorescence subtended a large swiftly degrading fibrous cataphyll; peduncle terete, 11-15 x 0.5-1.2 cm; spathe canoe-shaped, stoutly long reflexed-beaked, 25 x 5 cm, fleshy, creamy white, falling at female receptivity to leave a large, straight scar; spadix cylindrical, obtuse, sometimes slightly curved, sessile, inserted ± level on peduncle, 9-10 x 1-1.2 cm, creamy white; stylar region weakly hexagonal, often almost round, c. 1.5 mm diam., truncate; stigma elongate, prominently raised, c. 0.5-0.75 x 0.30.4mm; anthers exserted at anthesis; INFRUCTESCENCE stoutly oblong-cylindrical, 4.5-14 x 1.5-2 cm, greenish yellow.