Nepenthes hirsuta
Encyclopedia
Nepenthes hirsuta the Hairy Pitcher-Plant, is a tropical pitcher plant
endemic to Borneo
. It is characterised by an indumentum
of thick brown hairs, which is even present on the inflorescence
. Pitchers are mostly green throughout with some having red blotches on the inside surfaces.
N. hirsuta grows at an elevation of 200–1100 m. It is present in a wide range of habitats, including kerangas forest
, mossy banks in lower montane forest, open areas, and disturbed vegetation on lower ridges. It grows mostly on sandstone
substrate
s.
and N. macrovulgaris. Botanists Matthew Jebb
and Martin Cheek
suggest that N. hirsuta is also related to N. philippinensis
, a species endemic to Palawan
in the Philippines
.
Pitcher plant
Pitcher plants are carnivorous plants whose prey-trapping mechanism features a deep cavity filled with liquid known as a pitfall trap. It has been widely assumed that the various sorts of pitfall trap evolved from rolled leaves, with selection pressure favouring more deeply cupped leaves over...
endemic to Borneo
Borneo
Borneo is the third largest island in the world and is located north of Java Island, Indonesia, at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia....
. It is characterised by an indumentum
Indumentum
The indumentum is a covering of fine hairs or bristles on a plant or insect.In plants, the indumentum types are:*pubescent*hirsute*pilose*villous*tomentose*stellate*scabrous*scurfy...
of thick brown hairs, which is even present on the inflorescence
Inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...
. Pitchers are mostly green throughout with some having red blotches on the inside surfaces.
N. hirsuta grows at an elevation of 200–1100 m. It is present in a wide range of habitats, including kerangas forest
Kerangas forest
Sundaland heath forest, also known as Kerangas forest, is a type of tropical moist forest found on the island of Borneo, which is divided between Brunei, Indonesia, and Malaysia, as well as on the Indonesian islands of Belitung and Bangka, which lie to the west of Borneo.-Setting:The word Kerangas,...
, mossy banks in lower montane forest, open areas, and disturbed vegetation on lower ridges. It grows mostly on sandstone
Sandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...
substrate
Substrate (biology)
In biology a substrate is the surface a plant or animal lives upon and grows on. A substrate can include biotic or abiotic materials and animals. For example, encrusting algae that lives on a rock can be substrate for another animal that lives on top of the algae. See also substrate .-External...
s.
Taxonomy
N. hirsuta is most closely related to N. hispidaNepenthes hispida
Nepenthes hispida is a tropical pitcher plant species native to Borneo. It grows at elevations of 100 to 800 m in kerangas forest. It is known with certainty only from Lambir Hills National Park and surrounding areas....
and N. macrovulgaris. Botanists Matthew Jebb
Matthew Jebb
Dr. Matthew H. P. Jebb is an Irish taxonomist and botanist specialising in the ant plant genera Squamellaria, Myrmecodia, Hydnophytum, Myrmephytum and Anthorrhiza, as well as the carnivorous plant genus Nepenthes....
and Martin Cheek
Martin Cheek
Dr. Martin Roy Cheek is a taxonomist and botanist specialising in the carnivorous plant genus Nepenthes.-Research:Cheek has described several new Nepenthes species, mostly with Matthew Jebb, including: N. argentii, N. aristolochioides, N. danseri, N. diatas,...
suggest that N. hirsuta is also related to N. philippinensis
Nepenthes philippinensis
Nepenthes philippinensis is a tropical pitcher plant endemic to the Philippines. It is known from Palawan and the Calamian Islands , where it grows at 0–600 m above sea level....
, a species endemic to Palawan
Palawan
Palawan is an island province of the Philippines located in the MIMAROPA region or Region 4. Its capital is Puerto Princesa City, and it is the largest province in the country in terms of total area of jurisdiction. The islands of Palawan stretch from Mindoro in the northeast to Borneo in the...
in the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
.
Morphological differences between N. macrovulgaris, N. hirsuta and N. hispida (Steiner, 2002 after Clarke, 1997) N. macrovulgaris N. hirsuta N. hispida leaves charteous ≤30 cm, oblong to linear leaves coriaceous ≤20 cm, canaliculate-spathulate or obovate leaves coriaceous sessile ≤28 cm, oblanceolate-oblongate apex acute to obtuse apex acute or roundish apex acuminate-obtuse, often unequal base attenuate into a winged petiole, wings wider towards the base, clasping stem for about ½ its diameter, not decurrent base attenuate, forming laterally flattened, semi-amplexicaul sheath base attenuate, amplexicaul and often decurrent onto the internode longitudinal veins: 2-3 on each side longitudinal veins not prominent longitudinal veins: 3 on each side adult pitchers and stem glabrous, young pitchers with short, thin hairs stem densely covered with long brown hairs, not as bristle-like as those of N. hispida stem very densely covered with bristle-like purple-grey hairs
Infraspecific taxa
- Nepenthes hirsuta var. glabrata Macf. (1908)
- Nepenthes hirsuta var. glabrescens W.G.Sm. (1882) [=N. distillatoriaNepenthes distillatoriaNepenthes distillatoria is a tropical pitcher plant endemic to Sri Lanka. It was the second Nepenthes species to be described in print and the first to be formally named under the Linnaean system of taxonomy...
] - Nepenthes hirsuta var. glabrescens rubra auct. non Hort. ex Rafarin: Nichols. (1892) [=N. distillatoriaNepenthes distillatoriaNepenthes distillatoria is a tropical pitcher plant endemic to Sri Lanka. It was the second Nepenthes species to be described in print and the first to be formally named under the Linnaean system of taxonomy...
] - Nepenthes hirsuta var. typica Macf. (1908) nom.illeg.Nomen illegitimumA nomen illegitimum is a technical term, used mainly in botany. It is usually abbreviated as nom. illeg..-Definition:...
Natural hybrids
The following natural hybrids involving N. hirsuta have been recorded.- N. albomarginataNepenthes albomarginataNepenthes albomarginata , the White-Collared Pitcher-Plant, is a tropical pitcher plant native to Borneo, Peninsular Malaysia, and Sumatra...
× N. hirsuta - N. ampullariaNepenthes ampullariaNepenthes ampullaria , the Flask-Shaped Pitcher-Plant, is a very distinctive and widespread species of Nepenthes, present in Borneo, Sumatra, Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia, Singapore, the Maluku Islands, and New Guinea...
× N. hirsuta - ? N. hirsuta × N. lowiiNepenthes lowiiNepenthes lowii , or Low's Pitcher-Plant, is a tropical pitcher plant endemic to Borneo. It is named after Hugh Low, who discovered it on Mount Kinabalu...
Further reading
- Adam, J.H., C.C. Wilcock & M.D. Swaine 1992. Journal of Tropical Forest Science 5(1): 13–25.
- Adam, J.H. & C.C. Wilcock 1999. Pertanika Journal of Tropical Agricultural Science 22(1): 1–7.
- Bourke, G. 2011. The Nepenthes of Mulu National Park. Carniflora AustralisCarniflora AustralisCarniflora Australis is a biannual English-language periodical and the official publication of the Australasian Carnivorous Plant Society. Typical articles include matters of horticultural interest, field reports, and scientific studies. The journal was established in March 2003...
8(1): 20–31. - Clarke, C.M. 2006. Introduction. In: Danser, B.H. The Nepenthaceae of the Netherlands IndiesThe Nepenthaceae of the Netherlands Indies"The Nepenthaceae of the Netherlands Indies" is a seminal monograph by B. H. Danser on the tropical pitcher plants of the Dutch East Indies, North Borneo, the Malay Peninsula, and eastern New Guinea...
. Natural History Publications (Borneo), Kota Kinabalu. pp. 1–15. - Lee, C.C. 2002. Proceedings of the 4th International Carnivorous Plant Conference, Hiroshima University, Tokyo: 25–30. Mansur, M. 2001. In: Prosiding Seminar Hari Cinta Puspa dan Satwa Nasional. Lembaga Ilmu Pengetahuan Indonesia, Bogor. pp. 244–253.
- Russell, C. & E. Ossian 1990. Opportunistic feeding involving the pitcher plants Nepenthes hirsuta, Nepenthes gracilis and the epiphytic orchid Schomburgkia tibicinis, or natural ant eradication, the rube goldberg method. The Orchid Digest 54(4): 182–184.
- Steiner, H.Hugo SteinerHugo Steiner is a Swiss citizen who graduated from the University of Zurich as a physician specialising in endocrinology. He worked for several years as the leader of a research group in experimental endocrinology for Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd in Basel, Switzerland. He has also done research work in...
2002. Borneo: Its Mountains and Lowlands with their Pitcher Plants. Toihaan Publishing Company, Kota Kinabalu. viii + 136 pp. - Thorogood, C. 2010. The Malaysian Nepenthes: Evolutionary and Taxonomic Perspectives. Nova Science Publishers, New York.