Dracontium guianense G.H.Zhu & Croat

Tuber hemispherical, 10-15cm below ground level; petioles 2.5m long above ground, 1.2cm diam. at midpoint, dark green, contrastingly mottled with dirty white or pale green blotches and forming a reptilian pattern, smooth; mature blades 80-100cm wide, subcoriaceous, rarely fenestrate, never variegated, without raphide cells or dark markings, glossy and dark green above, semiglossy and medium green below; middle division once or twice trichotomously branched, 40-50 × 35-40cm, with terminal subdivision never divided into sections, with each basal subdivision consisting of many segments; lateral divisions twice dichotomously branched, 40-45 × 35-40cm, with terminal subdivision consisting of 2 sections, with basal subdivision consisting of many segments; terminal and subterminal sections free, each consisting of many segments; broadly oblanceolate, more than 5cm wide on each side of the major ribs, oblanceolate, mostly free from each other in each division, often with contrastingly smaller rounded or triangular segments alternating with larger segments; apices acuminate; ultimate segments 15-17cm long, free from penultimate segments; other segments 3-15cm long; penultimate segments free from subterminal sections; medial segments free from basal subdivisions; basal segments present, free from each other; rachises patterned similar to petiole but in much paler shades, smooth; tertiary veins obscure above and weakly raised below; bracteoles 1, 10-15cm long, 0.5-1cm wide, light brown, the longest one much shorter than the pedluncle, confined at the base of the peduncle. Inflorescence solitary, appearing after new leaf; peduncle 30-40cm long above ground, 0.5cm diam. at midpoint, less than half as long as the petiole, mottled similar to petiole but deeper in color, brownish green, smooth; spathe 9-10 × 4-5cm, cymbiform, non-cucullate, erect or slightly arching up to 45o angle, apex acuminate; inner surface semiglossy, maroon, with translucent area obscure; outer surface maroon tinged brown, matte; margins entire, hardly overlapping at the base; veins obscure or conspicuous inside, conspicuously darker or paler than the spathe; spadix sessile, cylindric, brown or brown-purple, 2.8 × 0.6cm at anthesis, never with appendages at apex. Flower tepals 4 to 5, 2-3mm long, 1-2mm wide, light brown; stamens 4 to 6; filaments 2-3mm long; anthers 0.5mm long, completely exserted; ovary bilocular, pale green; stigma 2- or 3-lobed; style 0.5mm long above tepals, green, persistent. Infructescence with spadix 4.3cm long, 3.2cm diam. in fruit; berries 2-seeded, 0.7-1cm diam., 1cm thick, subglobose, 3- to 6-angular, apically truncate; young berries medium green; mature berries orange, without reddish dots and raphide cells; seeds ca. 0.65cm diam., rounded, dark brown, laterally convex; dorsal ridges obvious, 3, continuous, more than 1mm thick, 0.1mm high, finely decorated with small cells (pits) on both sides.