Anthurium nigrescens [Engl. ]

Anthurium nigrescens

General description:

Epiphytic or hemiepiphytic vine; internodes elongate, 3-7 cm long, 1-2 cm diam., gray-green, smooth, weakly glossy to semiglossy; cataphylls to 2 cm long, chartaceous to subcoriaceous, to 13 cm long, persisting intact and drying black or deciduous, often with a few fibers remaining on upper nodes; petioles 27-50 cm long (averaging 39.5 cm), 3-6 mm diam. at middle, terete or obtusely flattened adaxially, medium green, unmarked, drying black; blades ovate-cordate to elongate triangular-ovate, acuminate at apex, cordate at base, 30-49 cm long, 18-30.3 cm wide (averaging 38.3 x 23.6 cm), 1.5-1.7 times longer than broad, .6-1.2 times longer than the petioles, broadest at or slightly below point of petiole attachment, subcoriaceous to moderately coriaceous; both surfaces semiglossy to glossy, drying black; upper surface medium to dark green; lower surface slightly paler; anterior lobe 25-35 cm long, 20-26 cm wide, broadest at base; posterior lobes 9-13 cm long, 9-13 cm wide, broadest at base, directed somewhat inward, rounded at apex; sinus spathulate, 7-12 cm deep; midrib narrowly rounded and slightly paler above, round-raised and paler below; basal veins 4-5 pair, the 3rd -4th coalesced (0.5)1-6 cm; posterior rib curved, partly naked to not at all naked; primary lateral veins 7-10, departing midrib at 45°-60° angles, ascending to collective vein, narrowly raised, slightly paler, often in weak valleys above, narrowly raised and slightly paler below; interprimary veins weakly raised below; tertiary veins moderately obscure; collective vein arising from one of first basal veins, 4-11 mm from margin; INFLORESCENCES erect-spreading; spathe green, reflexed, brittle; spadix yellow-green; pistils weakly exserted.

General Description Reference:

Thomas B. Croat, Pu Huang, Jeffrey Lake, Carla V. Kostelac, 2009. Araceae of the Flora of Reserva La Planada, Narino Department, Colombia (Part 1)

Distribution Reference:

Thomas B. Croat, Pu Huang, Jeffrey Lake, Carla V. Kostelac, 2009. Araceae of the Flora of Reserva La Planada, Narino Department, Colombia (Part 1)

Distribution:

Anthurium nigrescens ranges from Colombia (Antioquia, Caqueta, Cauca, Choco, Cundinamarca, Huila, Narino, Risaralda, Santander, Valle del Cauca), Ecuador (Azuay, Carchi, Esmeraldas, Imbabura, Loja, Los Rios, Morona-Santiago, Pichincha, Zamora-Chinchipe), Peru (Amazonas, Cajamarca, Cusco, Huanuco, Junin, Pasco, San Martin) to Venezuela (Merida, Tachira), at elevations of 750-2,800 m (primarily above 1,700 m), in Lower montane dry forest, Premontane moist forest, Premontane rain forest, Premontane wet forest and Tropical moist forest life zones. It occurs throughout the upper elevations of the Western Cordillera of the Andes in Southern Colombia and much of Ecuador. At La Planada, it was collected in primary cloud forest above La Posada, along the trail to El Hondon, and along Sendero La Vieja.

Taxonomy

Taxonomic Notes:

Anthurium nigrescens is of uncertain sectional affinity but is currently placed in sect. Cardiolonchium and is recognized by its scandent habit, long internodes, and black-drying blades with prominent tertiary veins as well as by its green, reflexed spathe and yellow-green spadix. It is most easily confused with A. martae owing to its vine-like habitat as well as by its elongated internodes and ovate-cordate blades but it differs from that species in having blades that dry blackened rather than greenish and are semiglossy rather than matte-subvelvety as in A. martae. A noteworthy collection is Croat 69599, which differs from other material at La Planada in having somewhat longer blades (1.9-2.2 times longer than wide versus ca. 1.6 times longer than wide for other collections) and in having cataphylls persisting intact versus cataphylls deciduous or persisting semi-intact or as a few pale fibers at upper nodes. Another noteworthy collection (Croat 71701 from near Altaquer in Narino) differs in having blades that dry more yellow-brown with finer reticulate venation and a collective vein closer to the margin and more regular. It perhaps represents another species.

Taxonomic Notes Reference:

Thomas B. Croat, Pu Huang, Jeffrey Lake, Carla V. Kostelac, 2009. Araceae of the Flora of Reserva La Planada, Narino Department, Colombia (Part 1)

CATE Araceae

Araceae

Anthurium nigrescens Engl.

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