Nepenthes longifolia
Encyclopedia
Nepenthes longifolia is a tropical pitcher plant
endemic to Sumatra
, where it grows at elevations of between 300 and 1100 m above sea level. The specific epithet longifolia, formed from the Latin
words longus (long) and folius (leaf), refers to the exceptionally large leaves of this species.
in 1957. The specimen Meijer 6913 was collected on August 24, 1957, in a sandstone
region of the river Tjampo near Taram in West Sumatra
, at an altitude of 500–1000 m. The plant was growing in forest on the slope of a river valley. The specimen is sheet H.L.B. 958.85111 at the National Herbarium of the Netherlands
in Leiden.
In 1986, Rusjdi Tamin and Mitsuru Hotta
invalidly described Nepenthes rafflesiana
var. longicirrhosa. Charles Clarke
observed this taxon
at the type locality in 1995 and concluded that it is conspecific with N. longifolia. Subsequent revisions of the genus have formally synonymised these taxa.
Nepenthes longifolia was formally described
by Joachim Nerz
and Andreas Wistuba
in a 1994 issue of the Carnivorous Plant Newsletter
. The holotype
of N. longifolia, Nerz 2801, was collected by Joachim Nerz on September 25, 1992, in the Tjampo Mountains near Taram, West Sumatra, at an altitude of 1000 m. It is deposited at the National Herbarium of the Netherlands
in Leiden. Seven other specimens of N. longifolia were collected on the same day and at the same location; Nerz 2802, 2803, 2804, and 2805 are deposited at the National Herbarium of the Netherlands
(L) together with the holotype, while Nerz 2806, 2807, and 2808 are held at the Institut für Biologie I at the Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen
(TUB).
Matthew Jebb
and Martin Cheek
treated N. longifolia in synonymy with N. sumatrana
in their 1997 monograph, "A skeletal revision of Nepenthes (Nepenthaceae)
". The authors tentatively upheld this synonymy in their 2001 revision, "Nepenthaceae
", writing:
The most recent taxonomic revision by Charles Clarke
, Nepenthes of Sumatra and Peninsular Malaysia
(2001), elevated N. longifolia to species status once again.
s are sub-cylindrical in cross section and up to 12 cm long.
Leaves are coriaceous in texture. The lamina is lanceolate to lanceolate-spathulate or lanceolate-obovate in shape and up to 55 cm long and 9 cm wide. It has an emarginate apex. The lamina is gradually attenuate into a short petiole
(≤7 cm). The petiole is decurrent into a pair of wings (≤2 mm wide) that extend over almost the whole length of the internode. Three to eight longitudinal veins are present on either side of the midrib. Pinnate veins are numerous but indistinct. Tendril
s are usually shorter or as long as the lamina, although they may be as long as 110 cm.
Rosette and lower pitchers are infrequently produced and are borne on very long tendrils. They are ventricose or narrowly ovoid in the lower part and cylindrical above. They grow up to 20 cm high and 5 cm wide. A pair of fringed wings (≤5 mm wide) runs down the front of the pitcher. The fringe elements are up 6 mm long and are spaced 1 to 3 mm apart. The pitcher mouth has an oblique insertion and is acuminate towards the lid. The peristome
is flattened, up to 6 mm wide, and has a distinct raised section at the front, often with one or two notches. It is broadly cylindrical in cross section and bears a series of ribs spaced 0.2 mm apart. The gland
ular region covers the ventricose portion of the inner surface. Overarched glands are present at a concentration of around 500 per square centimetre. The pitcher lid or operculum
is orbicular or ovate, up to 3 cm in diameter, and lacks appendages. A number of large round to ovate glands are concentrated near the midrib on the lower surface of the lid. An unbranched spur
(≤15 mm long) is inserted near the base of the lid.
Upper pitchers arise gradually from the end of the tendril, forming a curve up to 4 cm wide. They are narrowly infundibular in the lowermost parts, slightly ovoid up to the hip, and cylindrical or tubulose above. Upper pitchers are produced on shorter tendrils, but are larger than their lower counterparts, growing to 25 cm in height and 4 cm in width. They have a pair of prominent ribs in place of wings, sometimes bearing fringe elements near the peristome. As in lower pitchers, the mouth is oblique, elevated, and acuminate towards the lid. The flattened peristome is up to 6 mm wide. It has a raised section at the front and is characteristically crumpled into 3 prominent folds. The glandular region covers the infundibulate part of the inner surface, with around 500 glands per square centimetre. The lid and spur are similar to those of lower pitchers.
Nepenthes longifolia has a racemose
inflorescence
. Male and female inflorescences have the same structure. The peduncle
is up to 25 cm long and 3 mm wide. The rachis
is also up to 25 cm long. Partial peduncles are one- or two-flowered, up to 15 mm long, and may or may not be bract
eolate. Sepal
s are ovate and up to 5 mm long. Stamen
s are approximately 5 mm long including the anthers. Seed
capsules are up to 3 cm long.
Most parts of the plant bear a short, sparse indumentum
of simple and stellate hairs. However, many of these hairs are caducous and so mature plants appear mostly glabrous. The margins of the lamina are densely lined with short reddish-brown hairs.
The stem and leaves are green, the latter sometimes having a reddish lower surface. Leaves of rosette plants often have a red midrib. Lower pitchers are generally brownish-red with a green to reddish-green peristome. The inner surface of the pitcher is usually pale green and the lid is red. Upper pitchers are characteristically light green throughout.
n province
of West Sumatra
and may also be present in North Sumatra
. It grows terrestrially in dense, shady lowland or submontane forest on steep sandstone
slopes and ridges. As a result of developing against such inclined surfaces, the leaves of rosette plants often assume an almost vertical orientation. The species has an altitudinal distribution of 300 to 1100 m above sea level.
Around the river Tjampo in West Sumatra, N. longifolia is sympatric with N. adnata
, N. albomarginata
, N. ampullaria
, N. eustachya
, N. gracilis
, and N. reinwardtiana
. However, the species is only known to hybridise with N. eustachya. On Mount Tjampo itself, N. longifolia grows in a number of isolated patches and is sympatric with N. albomarginata, N. eustachya, and N. reinwardtiana.
Plants resembling the type of N. longifolia are abundant along the road from Sibolga
to Tarutung
in North Sumatra. They differ from those of West Sumatra in a number of morphological features and may represent the poorly known N. beccariana
. This taxon is sympatric with N. ampullaria, N. gracilis, N. rafflesiana
, N. reinwardtiana, and N. tobaica
.
Nepenthes longifolia is not listed on the 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
as the list follows Jebb and Cheek in treating N. longifolia in synonymy with N. sumatrana
. The combined conservation status
for both taxa is listed as Least Concern
. However, recent studies have shown that these two taxa
are distinct species. In 2001, Charles Clarke
suggested a revised status of Vulnerable
for N. longifolia based on the IUCN criteria. The habitat of this species may be threatened in the near future by fires deliberately started to clear forest for agricultural
purposes.
; the stem and lamina of these species are virtually identical in appearance. Nevertheless, N. longifolia can be distinguished from N. sumatrana on the basis of a number of significant and stable morphological differences. The tendrils on rosette leaves of N. longifolia are exceptionally long, reaching 110 cm, while those of N. sumatrana are not known to exceed 60 cm. As a result, the lower pitchers of N. longifolia are usually around 1/10 the length of the tendril, compared to 1/5 in the case of N. sumatrana. Although the lower pitchers on immature rosettes are similar in general morphology, the species differ in the shape of lower pitchers on rosettes sprouting from mature plants. Those of N. sumatrana are ovoid throughout, with an orbicular lid and the hip immediately beneath the peristome, and are contracted at an angle of 45° to the mouth. Those of N. longifolia are ovoid in the lower parts, having the hip around the middle and an ovate lid. In addition, the upper pitchers of N. longifolia do not give off a noticeable smell, whereas those of N. sumatrana have a sweet, fruity fragrance. In addition, the upper pitchers of N. longifolia are only infundibular in the lower parts, compared to the wholly infundibular aerial pitchers of N. sumatrana. Furthermore, the peristome of N. longifolia, although distinctly notched, is never raised at the front like in N. rafflesisna, unlike that of N. sumatrana, which has a very pronounced raised section. In their description of N. longifolia, Nerz and Wistuba also used the structure of the inflorescence to distinguish these taxa, but subsequent observations have shown that both species produce one- and two-flowered partial peduncles.
Nepenthes longifolia is also closely related to N. rafflesiana
. It can be distinguished from that species on the basis of its fringed leaf margins, very long tendrils of rosettes, upper pitchers that are cylindrical above the hip, and the notched peristome which is not greatly expanded near the lid as in N. rafflesiana.
Plants that resemble the type of N. longifolia grow along the road from Sibolga
to Tarutung
in North Sumatra. They are atypical of the species in that the leaf bases are not decurrent along the internode, some of the hairs lining the leaf margins are caducous, and the plants grow in both exposed sites and amongst dense vegetation. This taxon is also similar to, and may be conspecific with, the obscure N. beccariana
.
Nepenthes beccariana was described by John Muirhead Macfarlane
in 1908 based on a specimen collected on Nias
, an island located approximately 120 km from the port town of Sibolga. Twenty years later, B. H. Danser
synonymised the taxon with N. mirabilis
in his seminal monograph "The Nepenthaceae of the Netherlands Indies
", although he did not see the type specimen of N. beccariana. In 2000, Jan Schlauer and C. Nepi examined the type specimen of N. beccariana and noted significant differences between it and N. mirabilis, suggesting that it should be restored as a distinct species. Charles Clarke
agrees that N. beccariana appears to be distinct from both N. mirabilis and N. sumatrana but notes that if N. beccariana is found to be conspecific with N. longifolia, the latter taxon would become a junior synonym of the former. However, observations of N. beccariana at the type locality would need to be carried out to resolve this taxonomic confusion, since the type specimen of N. beccariana only consists of fragments of three leaves and three pitchers (two rosette pitchers and one upper pitcher) and is in a damaged state; the leaves are separated from the stem such that their attachment is unknown.
In 2001, Clarke published a cladistic analysis of the Nepenthes species of Sumatra and Peninsular Malaysia
based on 70 morphological characteristics of each taxon. The following is a portion of the resultant cladogram
, showing part of "Clade 5", which has 69% bootstrap support. The sister pair of N. rafflesiana and N. sumatrana has 58% support. N. beccariana was not included in this study.
Seedlings of N. adnata
and N. longifolia are virtually indistinguishable, although mature plants have few morphological features in common. Clarke writes that N. longifolia is likely to be one of the closest relatives of N. adnata.
is known with confidence, although it may also hybridise with N. sumatrana
.
Nepenthes eustachya
× N. longifolia has been recorded from a number of locations near Payakumbuh
and Sibolga
, where its parent species are sympatric. It is relatively rare because N. eustachya and N. longifolia occur in markedly different habitats; the former usually grows in exposed, sunny sites, while the latter is more common in dense, shady forest. This hybrid differs from N. eustachya in having fringed lamina margins bearing short reddish-brown hairs. The peristome often has a distinctive raised section at the front, a characteristic inherited from N. longifolia. It can be distinguished from N. longifolia on the basis of its shorter tendrils and the presence of longitudinal furrows on the surface of the lamina, similar to those of N. eustachya.
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 Sumatra
Sumatra
Sumatra is an island in western Indonesia, westernmost of the Sunda Islands. It is the largest island entirely in Indonesia , and the sixth largest island in the world at 473,481 km2 with a population of 50,365,538...
, where it grows at elevations of between 300 and 1100 m above sea level. The specific epithet longifolia, formed from the Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
words longus (long) and folius (leaf), refers to the exceptionally large leaves of this species.
Botanical history
The first known collection of N. longifolia was made by Willem MeijerWillem Meijer
Willem 'Wim' Meijer was a Dutch botanist and plant collector.-Background and education:Meijer was born in 1923 in The Hague, Netherlands. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Amsterdam in 1951...
in 1957. The specimen Meijer 6913 was collected on August 24, 1957, in a 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,...
region of the river Tjampo near Taram in West Sumatra
West Sumatra
West Sumatra is a province of Indonesia. It lies on the west coast of the island Sumatra. It borders the provinces of North Sumatra to the north, Riau and Jambi to the east, and Bengkulu to the southeast. It includes the Mentawai Islands off the coast...
, at an altitude of 500–1000 m. The plant was growing in forest on the slope of a river valley. The specimen is sheet H.L.B. 958.85111 at the National Herbarium of the Netherlands
National Herbarium of the Netherlands
The National Herbarium of the Netherlands was established in 1999 through a decentralized merger of the major university herbaria of Leiden , Utrecht and Wageningen...
in Leiden.
In 1986, Rusjdi Tamin and Mitsuru Hotta
Mitsuru Hotta
is a Japanese botanist best known for his research on Araceae.Hotta was born in Osaka, Japan in 1937. He graduated from the Agricultural Department of Osaka Prefecture University in 1960. The same year, he took part in the Tonga and Fiji Expedition organised by Kyoto University...
invalidly described Nepenthes rafflesiana
Nepenthes rafflesiana
Nepenthes rafflesiana , or Raffles' Pitcher-Plant, is a species of pitcher plant. It has a very wide distribution covering Borneo, Sumatra, Peninsular Malaysia, and Singapore. Nepenthes rafflesiana is extremely variable with numerous forms and varieties described. In Borneo alone, there are at...
var. longicirrhosa. Charles Clarke
Charles Clarke (botanist)
Dr. Charles M. Clarke is a botanist and taxonomist specialising in the carnivorous plant genus Nepenthes. Clarke has an honours degree in Botany from Monash University in Melbourne, and a Ph.D. in Ecosystem Management at the University of New England, in Armidale, New South Wales.Clarke first...
observed this taxon
Taxon
|thumb|270px|[[African elephants]] form a widely-accepted taxon, the [[genus]] LoxodontaA taxon is a group of organisms, which a taxonomist adjudges to be a unit. Usually a taxon is given a name and a rank, although neither is a requirement...
at the type locality in 1995 and concluded that it is conspecific with N. longifolia. Subsequent revisions of the genus have formally synonymised these taxa.
Nepenthes longifolia was formally described
Species description
A species description or type description is a formal description of a newly discovered species, usually in the form of a scientific paper. Its purpose is to give a clear description of a new species of organism and explain how it differs from species which have been described previously, or are...
by Joachim Nerz
Joachim Nerz
Dr. Joachim Nerz is a taxonomist and botanist specialising in the carnivorous plant genera Heliamphora and Nepenthes. Nerz has described several new species, mostly with Andreas Wistuba.-Publications:...
and Andreas Wistuba
Andreas Wistuba
Dr. Andreas Wistuba is a German taxonomist and botanist specialising in the carnivorous plant genera Heliamphora and Nepenthes. More than half of all known Heliamphora species have been described by Wistuba.-Publications:...
in a 1994 issue of the Carnivorous Plant Newsletter
Carnivorous Plant Newsletter
The Carnivorous Plant Newsletter is the official publication of the International Carnivorous Plant Society , the largest such organization in the world.-History and editorship:...
. The holotype
Holotype
A holotype is a single physical example of an organism, known to have been used when the species was formally described. It is either the single such physical example or one of several such, but explicitly designated as the holotype...
of N. longifolia, Nerz 2801, was collected by Joachim Nerz on September 25, 1992, in the Tjampo Mountains near Taram, West Sumatra, at an altitude of 1000 m. It is deposited at the National Herbarium of the Netherlands
National Herbarium of the Netherlands
The National Herbarium of the Netherlands was established in 1999 through a decentralized merger of the major university herbaria of Leiden , Utrecht and Wageningen...
in Leiden. Seven other specimens of N. longifolia were collected on the same day and at the same location; Nerz 2802, 2803, 2804, and 2805 are deposited at the National Herbarium of the Netherlands
National Herbarium of the Netherlands
The National Herbarium of the Netherlands was established in 1999 through a decentralized merger of the major university herbaria of Leiden , Utrecht and Wageningen...
(L) together with the holotype, while Nerz 2806, 2807, and 2808 are held at the Institut für Biologie I at the Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen
Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen
Eberhard Karls University, Tübingen is a public university located in the city of Tübingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is one of Germany's oldest universities, internationally noted in medicine, natural sciences and the humanities. In the area of German Studies it has been ranked first among...
(TUB).
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,...
treated N. longifolia in synonymy with N. sumatrana
Nepenthes sumatrana
Nepenthes sumatrana is a tropical pitcher plant endemic to the Indonesian island of Sumatra, after which it is named.-Discovery and taxonomy:...
in their 1997 monograph, "A skeletal revision of Nepenthes (Nepenthaceae)
A skeletal revision of Nepenthes (Nepenthaceae)
"A skeletal revision of Nepenthes " is a monograph by Matthew Jebb and Martin Cheek on the tropical pitcher plants of the genus Nepenthes. It was published in the May 1997 issue of the botanical journal Blumea. The work represented the first revision of the entire genus since John Muirhead...
". The authors tentatively upheld this synonymy in their 2001 revision, "Nepenthaceae
Nepenthaceae (2001 monograph)
"Nepenthaceae" is a monograph by Martin Cheek and Matthew Jebb on the tropical pitcher plants of Malesia, which encompasses Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, and Singapore. It was published in 2001 by the National Herbarium of the Netherlands as the fifteenth volume of...
", writing:
Although we treat N. longifolia as a synonym [of N. sumatrana], it is representative of other specimens from inland Sumatra, at higher altitudes (c. 1000 m) that show differences from the plants at sea level on the coast. The inland plants have more slender pitchers which are ellipsoid in the lower half and cylindrical in the upper (not infundibuliform), with an elliptic (not a suborbicular) lid. However, intermediates are reported. More specimens are needed before N. longifolia can be fully resolved.
The most recent taxonomic revision by Charles Clarke
Charles Clarke (botanist)
Dr. Charles M. Clarke is a botanist and taxonomist specialising in the carnivorous plant genus Nepenthes. Clarke has an honours degree in Botany from Monash University in Melbourne, and a Ph.D. in Ecosystem Management at the University of New England, in Armidale, New South Wales.Clarke first...
, Nepenthes of Sumatra and Peninsular Malaysia
Nepenthes of Sumatra and Peninsular Malaysia
Nepenthes of Sumatra and Peninsular Malaysia is a monograph by Charles Clarke on the tropical pitcher plants of Sumatra, Peninsular Malaysia, and their minor surrounding islands. It was published in 2001 by Natural History Publications...
(2001), elevated N. longifolia to species status once again.
Description
Nepenthes longifolia is a strong climber; the stem often grows to 10 m and can attain a length of up to 12 m. It is up to 9 mm in diameter. InternodePlant stem
A stem is one of two main structural axes of a vascular plant. The stem is normally divided into nodes and internodes, the nodes hold buds which grow into one or more leaves, inflorescence , conifer cones, roots, other stems etc. The internodes distance one node from another...
s are sub-cylindrical in cross section and up to 12 cm long.
Petiole (botany)
In botany, the petiole is the stalk attaching the leaf blade to the stem. The petiole usually has the same internal structure as the stem. Outgrowths appearing on each side of the petiole are called stipules. Leaves lacking a petiole are called sessile, or clasping when they partly surround the...
(≤7 cm). The petiole is decurrent into a pair of wings (≤2 mm wide) that extend over almost the whole length of the internode. Three to eight longitudinal veins are present on either side of the midrib. Pinnate veins are numerous but indistinct. Tendril
Tendril
In botany, a tendril is a specialized stem, leaf or petiole with a threadlike shape that is used by climbing plants for support, attachment and cellular invasion by parasitic plants, generally by twining around suitable hosts. They do not have a lamina or blade, but they can photosynthesize...
s are usually shorter or as long as the lamina, although they may be as long as 110 cm.
Rosette and lower pitchers are infrequently produced and are borne on very long tendrils. They are ventricose or narrowly ovoid in the lower part and cylindrical above. They grow up to 20 cm high and 5 cm wide. A pair of fringed wings (≤5 mm wide) runs down the front of the pitcher. The fringe elements are up 6 mm long and are spaced 1 to 3 mm apart. The pitcher mouth has an oblique insertion and is acuminate towards the lid. The peristome
Peristome
The word peristome is derived from the Greek peri, meaning 'around' or 'about', and stoma, 'mouth'. It is a term used to describe various anatomical features that surround an opening to an organ or structure. The term is used in plants and invertebrate animals, such as in describing the shells of...
is flattened, up to 6 mm wide, and has a distinct raised section at the front, often with one or two notches. It is broadly cylindrical in cross section and bears a series of ribs spaced 0.2 mm apart. The gland
Gland
A gland is an organ in an animal's body that synthesizes a substance for release of substances such as hormones or breast milk, often into the bloodstream or into cavities inside the body or its outer surface .- Types :...
ular region covers the ventricose portion of the inner surface. Overarched glands are present at a concentration of around 500 per square centimetre. The pitcher lid or operculum
Operculum (botany)
An operculum, in botany, is a term generally used to describe a structure within a plant, moss, or fungus acting as a cap, flap, or lid. In plants, it may also be called a bud cap.Examples of structures identified as opercula include:...
is orbicular or ovate, up to 3 cm in diameter, and lacks appendages. A number of large round to ovate glands are concentrated near the midrib on the lower surface of the lid. An unbranched spur
Spur (biology)
A spur in botany is a spike, usually part of a flower.In certain plants, part of a sepal or petal develops into an elongated hollow spike extending behind the flower, containing nectar which is sucked by long-tongued animals . Plants with such structures include Delphinium, Aquilegia, Piperia, and...
(≤15 mm long) is inserted near the base of the lid.
Nepenthes longifolia has a racemose
Raceme
A raceme is a type of inflorescence that is unbranched and indeterminate and bears pedicellate flowers — flowers having short floral stalks called pedicels — along the axis. In botany, axis means a shoot, in this case one bearing the flowers. In a raceme, the oldest flowers are borne...
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...
. Male and female inflorescences have the same structure. The peduncle
Peduncle (botany)
In botany, a peduncle is a stem supporting an inflorescence, or after fecundation, an infructescence.The peduncle is a stem, usually green and without leaves, though sometimes colored or supporting small leaves...
is up to 25 cm long and 3 mm wide. The rachis
Rachis
Rachis is a biological term for a main axis or "shaft".-In zoology:In vertebrates a rachis can refer to the series of articulated vertebrae, which encase the spinal cord. In this case the rachis usually form the supporting axis of the body and is then called the spine or vertebral column...
is also up to 25 cm long. Partial peduncles are one- or two-flowered, up to 15 mm long, and may or may not be bract
Bract
In botany, a bract is a modified or specialized leaf, especially one associated with a reproductive structure such as a flower, inflorescence axis, or cone scale. Bracts are often different from foliage leaves. They may be smaller, larger, or of a different color, shape, or texture...
eolate. Sepal
Sepal
A sepal is a part of the flower of angiosperms . Collectively the sepals form the calyx, which is the outermost whorl of parts that form a flower. Usually green, sepals have the typical function of protecting the petals when the flower is in bud...
s are ovate and up to 5 mm long. Stamen
Stamen
The stamen is the pollen producing reproductive organ of a flower...
s are approximately 5 mm long including the anthers. Seed
Seed
A seed is a small embryonic plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat, usually with some stored food. It is the product of the ripened ovule of gymnosperm and angiosperm plants which occurs after fertilization and some growth within the mother plant...
capsules are up to 3 cm long.
Most parts of the plant bear a short, sparse 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 simple and stellate hairs. However, many of these hairs are caducous and so mature plants appear mostly glabrous. The margins of the lamina are densely lined with short reddish-brown hairs.
The stem and leaves are green, the latter sometimes having a reddish lower surface. Leaves of rosette plants often have a red midrib. Lower pitchers are generally brownish-red with a green to reddish-green peristome. The inner surface of the pitcher is usually pale green and the lid is red. Upper pitchers are characteristically light green throughout.
Ecology
Nepenthes longifolia occurs in the IndonesiaIndonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
n province
Provinces of Indonesia
The province is the highest tier of local government subnational entity in Indonesia. Each province has its own local government, headed by a governor, and has its own legislative body...
of West Sumatra
West Sumatra
West Sumatra is a province of Indonesia. It lies on the west coast of the island Sumatra. It borders the provinces of North Sumatra to the north, Riau and Jambi to the east, and Bengkulu to the southeast. It includes the Mentawai Islands off the coast...
and may also be present in North Sumatra
North Sumatra
North Sumatra is a province of Indonesia on the Sumatra island. Its capital is Medan. It is the most populous Indonesian province outside of Java. It is slightly larger than Sri Lanka in area.- Geography and population :...
. It grows terrestrially in dense, shady lowland or submontane forest on steep 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,...
slopes and ridges. As a result of developing against such inclined surfaces, the leaves of rosette plants often assume an almost vertical orientation. The species has an altitudinal distribution of 300 to 1100 m above sea level.
Around the river Tjampo in West Sumatra, N. longifolia is sympatric with N. adnata
Nepenthes adnata
Nepenthes adnata is a tropical pitcher plant endemic to the Indonesian province of West Sumatra, where it grows at elevations of 600 to 1200 m above sea level. The specific epithet adnata is Latin for "broadly attached" and refers to the base of the lamina.-Botanical history:Nepenthes adnata was...
, N. albomarginata
Nepenthes albomarginata
Nepenthes albomarginata , the White-Collared Pitcher-Plant, is a tropical pitcher plant native to Borneo, Peninsular Malaysia, and Sumatra...
, N. ampullaria
Nepenthes ampullaria
Nepenthes 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. eustachya
Nepenthes eustachya
Nepenthes eustachya is a tropical pitcher plant endemic to Sumatra, where it grows from sea level to an elevation of 1600 m. The specific epithet eustachya, formed from the Greek words eu and stachys , refers to the racemose structure of the inflorescence.-Botanical history:Nepenthes eustachya...
, N. gracilis
Nepenthes gracilis
Nepenthes gracilis , or the Slender Pitcher-Plant, is a very common lowland pitcher plant that is widespread in the Sunda region. It has been recorded from Borneo, Peninsular Malaysia, Singapore, central Sulawesi, Sumatra, and southernmost Thailand...
, and N. reinwardtiana
Nepenthes reinwardtiana
Nepenthes reinwardtiana , Reinwardt's Pitcher-Plant, is a Nepenthes species found on the islands of Borneo and Sumatra. Although some sources have included Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore within the range of this species, these records appear to be erroneous.Nepenthes reinwardtiana has an...
. However, the species is only known to hybridise with N. eustachya. On Mount Tjampo itself, N. longifolia grows in a number of isolated patches and is sympatric with N. albomarginata, N. eustachya, and N. reinwardtiana.
Plants resembling the type of N. longifolia are abundant along the road from Sibolga
Sibolga
Sibolga is a city and a port on the west coast of North Sumatra province, in Indonesia. It is located on the western side of North Sumatra, facing the Indian Ocean and is a transit harbour to Nias island. It was hard hit during the 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake.- History :Poncan Ketek Island in...
to Tarutung
Tarutung
Tarutung is a town in North Sumatra province of Indonesia and it is the seat of North Tapanuli Regency.Tarutung in Batak language means durian, because there was a lot of durian trees there....
in North Sumatra. They differ from those of West Sumatra in a number of morphological features and may represent the poorly known N. beccariana
Nepenthes beccariana
Nepenthes beccariana is a tropical pitcher plant. The species was described in 1908 by John Muirhead Macfarlane based on a specimen collected from the island of Nias, which lies off the western coast of Sumatra...
. This taxon is sympatric with N. ampullaria, N. gracilis, N. rafflesiana
Nepenthes rafflesiana
Nepenthes rafflesiana , or Raffles' Pitcher-Plant, is a species of pitcher plant. It has a very wide distribution covering Borneo, Sumatra, Peninsular Malaysia, and Singapore. Nepenthes rafflesiana is extremely variable with numerous forms and varieties described. In Borneo alone, there are at...
, N. reinwardtiana, and N. tobaica
Nepenthes tobaica
Nepenthes tobaica is a tropical pitcher plant endemic to Sumatra. It is particularly abundant around Lake Toba, after which it is named....
.
Nepenthes longifolia is not listed on the 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
IUCN Red List
The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species , founded in 1963, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biological species. The International Union for Conservation of Nature is the world's main authority on the conservation status of species...
as the list follows Jebb and Cheek in treating N. longifolia in synonymy with N. sumatrana
Nepenthes sumatrana
Nepenthes sumatrana is a tropical pitcher plant endemic to the Indonesian island of Sumatra, after which it is named.-Discovery and taxonomy:...
. The combined conservation status
Conservation status
The conservation status of a group of organisms indicates whether the group is still extant and how likely the group is to become extinct in the near future...
for both taxa is listed as Least Concern
Least Concern
Least Concern is an IUCN category assigned to extant taxon or lower taxa which have been evaluated but do not qualify for any other category. As such they do not qualify as threatened, Near Threatened, or Conservation Dependent...
. However, recent studies have shown that these two taxa
Taxon
|thumb|270px|[[African elephants]] form a widely-accepted taxon, the [[genus]] LoxodontaA taxon is a group of organisms, which a taxonomist adjudges to be a unit. Usually a taxon is given a name and a rank, although neither is a requirement...
are distinct species. In 2001, Charles Clarke
Charles Clarke (botanist)
Dr. Charles M. Clarke is a botanist and taxonomist specialising in the carnivorous plant genus Nepenthes. Clarke has an honours degree in Botany from Monash University in Melbourne, and a Ph.D. in Ecosystem Management at the University of New England, in Armidale, New South Wales.Clarke first...
suggested a revised status of Vulnerable
Vulnerable species
On 30 January 2010, the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species identified 9694 Vulnerable species, subspecies and varieties, stocks and sub-populations.-References:...
for N. longifolia based on the IUCN criteria. The habitat of this species may be threatened in the near future by fires deliberately started to clear forest for agricultural
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
purposes.
Related species
Nepenthes longifolia is thought to be most closely related to N. sumatranaNepenthes sumatrana
Nepenthes sumatrana is a tropical pitcher plant endemic to the Indonesian island of Sumatra, after which it is named.-Discovery and taxonomy:...
; the stem and lamina of these species are virtually identical in appearance. Nevertheless, N. longifolia can be distinguished from N. sumatrana on the basis of a number of significant and stable morphological differences. The tendrils on rosette leaves of N. longifolia are exceptionally long, reaching 110 cm, while those of N. sumatrana are not known to exceed 60 cm. As a result, the lower pitchers of N. longifolia are usually around 1/10 the length of the tendril, compared to 1/5 in the case of N. sumatrana. Although the lower pitchers on immature rosettes are similar in general morphology, the species differ in the shape of lower pitchers on rosettes sprouting from mature plants. Those of N. sumatrana are ovoid throughout, with an orbicular lid and the hip immediately beneath the peristome, and are contracted at an angle of 45° to the mouth. Those of N. longifolia are ovoid in the lower parts, having the hip around the middle and an ovate lid. In addition, the upper pitchers of N. longifolia do not give off a noticeable smell, whereas those of N. sumatrana have a sweet, fruity fragrance. In addition, the upper pitchers of N. longifolia are only infundibular in the lower parts, compared to the wholly infundibular aerial pitchers of N. sumatrana. Furthermore, the peristome of N. longifolia, although distinctly notched, is never raised at the front like in N. rafflesisna, unlike that of N. sumatrana, which has a very pronounced raised section. In their description of N. longifolia, Nerz and Wistuba also used the structure of the inflorescence to distinguish these taxa, but subsequent observations have shown that both species produce one- and two-flowered partial peduncles.
Nepenthes longifolia is also closely related to N. rafflesiana
Nepenthes rafflesiana
Nepenthes rafflesiana , or Raffles' Pitcher-Plant, is a species of pitcher plant. It has a very wide distribution covering Borneo, Sumatra, Peninsular Malaysia, and Singapore. Nepenthes rafflesiana is extremely variable with numerous forms and varieties described. In Borneo alone, there are at...
. It can be distinguished from that species on the basis of its fringed leaf margins, very long tendrils of rosettes, upper pitchers that are cylindrical above the hip, and the notched peristome which is not greatly expanded near the lid as in N. rafflesiana.
Plants that resemble the type of N. longifolia grow along the road from Sibolga
Sibolga
Sibolga is a city and a port on the west coast of North Sumatra province, in Indonesia. It is located on the western side of North Sumatra, facing the Indian Ocean and is a transit harbour to Nias island. It was hard hit during the 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake.- History :Poncan Ketek Island in...
to Tarutung
Tarutung
Tarutung is a town in North Sumatra province of Indonesia and it is the seat of North Tapanuli Regency.Tarutung in Batak language means durian, because there was a lot of durian trees there....
in North Sumatra. They are atypical of the species in that the leaf bases are not decurrent along the internode, some of the hairs lining the leaf margins are caducous, and the plants grow in both exposed sites and amongst dense vegetation. This taxon is also similar to, and may be conspecific with, the obscure N. beccariana
Nepenthes beccariana
Nepenthes beccariana is a tropical pitcher plant. The species was described in 1908 by John Muirhead Macfarlane based on a specimen collected from the island of Nias, which lies off the western coast of Sumatra...
.
Nepenthes beccariana was described by John Muirhead Macfarlane
John Muirhead Macfarlane
John Muirhead Macfarlane was a Scottish botanist. He was born and educated in Scotland, where he occupied several different academic positions at the University of Edinburgh before emigrating to the United States to assume a professorial chair at the University of Pennsylvania in 1893. He held...
in 1908 based on a specimen collected on Nias
Nias
Nīas is an island off the western coast of Sumatra, Indonesia. Nias is also the name of the archipelago, containing the Hinako archipelago....
, an island located approximately 120 km from the port town of Sibolga. Twenty years later, B. H. Danser
B. H. Danser
Benedictus Hubertus Danser , often abbreviated B. H. Danser, was a Dutch taxonomist and botanist...
synonymised the taxon with N. mirabilis
Nepenthes mirabilis
Nepenthes mirabilis , or the Common Swamp Pitcher-Plant, is a tropical carnivorous plant species of the pitfall trap variety. It has by far the widest distribution of any Nepenthes species and is known from the following countries and regions: Borneo, Sumatra, Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia,...
in his seminal monograph "The Nepenthaceae of the Netherlands Indies
The 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...
", although he did not see the type specimen of N. beccariana. In 2000, Jan Schlauer and C. Nepi examined the type specimen of N. beccariana and noted significant differences between it and N. mirabilis, suggesting that it should be restored as a distinct species. Charles Clarke
Charles Clarke (botanist)
Dr. Charles M. Clarke is a botanist and taxonomist specialising in the carnivorous plant genus Nepenthes. Clarke has an honours degree in Botany from Monash University in Melbourne, and a Ph.D. in Ecosystem Management at the University of New England, in Armidale, New South Wales.Clarke first...
agrees that N. beccariana appears to be distinct from both N. mirabilis and N. sumatrana but notes that if N. beccariana is found to be conspecific with N. longifolia, the latter taxon would become a junior synonym of the former. However, observations of N. beccariana at the type locality would need to be carried out to resolve this taxonomic confusion, since the type specimen of N. beccariana only consists of fragments of three leaves and three pitchers (two rosette pitchers and one upper pitcher) and is in a damaged state; the leaves are separated from the stem such that their attachment is unknown.
In 2001, Clarke published a cladistic analysis of the Nepenthes species of Sumatra and Peninsular Malaysia
Peninsular Malaysia
Peninsular Malaysia , also known as West Malaysia , is the part of Malaysia which lies on the Malay Peninsula. Its area is . It shares a land border with Thailand in the north. To the south is the island of Singapore. Across the Strait of Malacca to the west lies the island of Sumatra...
based on 70 morphological characteristics of each taxon. The following is a portion of the resultant cladogram
Cladogram
A cladogram is a diagram used in cladistics which shows ancestral relations between organisms, to represent the evolutionary tree of life. Although traditionally such cladograms were generated largely on the basis of morphological characters, DNA and RNA sequencing data and computational...
, showing part of "Clade 5", which has 69% bootstrap support. The sister pair of N. rafflesiana and N. sumatrana has 58% support. N. beccariana was not included in this study.
Nepenthes adnata
Nepenthes adnata is a tropical pitcher plant endemic to the Indonesian province of West Sumatra, where it grows at elevations of 600 to 1200 m above sea level. The specific epithet adnata is Latin for "broadly attached" and refers to the base of the lamina.-Botanical history:Nepenthes adnata was...
and N. longifolia are virtually indistinguishable, although mature plants have few morphological features in common. Clarke writes that N. longifolia is likely to be one of the closest relatives of N. adnata.
Natural hybrids
Despite occurring sympatrically with a number of other Nepenthes species, N. longifolia appears to hybridise very rarely; only one natural cross with N. eustachyaNepenthes eustachya
Nepenthes eustachya is a tropical pitcher plant endemic to Sumatra, where it grows from sea level to an elevation of 1600 m. The specific epithet eustachya, formed from the Greek words eu and stachys , refers to the racemose structure of the inflorescence.-Botanical history:Nepenthes eustachya...
is known with confidence, although it may also hybridise with N. sumatrana
Nepenthes sumatrana
Nepenthes sumatrana is a tropical pitcher plant endemic to the Indonesian island of Sumatra, after which it is named.-Discovery and taxonomy:...
.
Nepenthes eustachya
Nepenthes eustachya
Nepenthes eustachya is a tropical pitcher plant endemic to Sumatra, where it grows from sea level to an elevation of 1600 m. The specific epithet eustachya, formed from the Greek words eu and stachys , refers to the racemose structure of the inflorescence.-Botanical history:Nepenthes eustachya...
× N. longifolia has been recorded from a number of locations near Payakumbuh
Payakumbuh
Payakumbuh is a city north-east of Bukittinggi , Indonesia. It has an area of 80.43 km² and a population of over 99,300 people. Literally translated, the city name means "grassy swamp"....
and Sibolga
Sibolga
Sibolga is a city and a port on the west coast of North Sumatra province, in Indonesia. It is located on the western side of North Sumatra, facing the Indian Ocean and is a transit harbour to Nias island. It was hard hit during the 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake.- History :Poncan Ketek Island in...
, where its parent species are sympatric. It is relatively rare because N. eustachya and N. longifolia occur in markedly different habitats; the former usually grows in exposed, sunny sites, while the latter is more common in dense, shady forest. This hybrid differs from N. eustachya in having fringed lamina margins bearing short reddish-brown hairs. The peristome often has a distinctive raised section at the front, a characteristic inherited from N. longifolia. It can be distinguished from N. longifolia on the basis of its shorter tendrils and the presence of longitudinal furrows on the surface of the lamina, similar to those of N. eustachya.