Nepenthes madagascariensis
Encyclopedia
Nepenthes madagascariensis ' onMouseout='HidePop("70352")' href="/topics/Madagascar">Madagascar
) is one of two Nepenthes
pitcher plant
species native to Madagascar, the other being N. masoalensis
.
recorded it in 1658 under the name Amramatico. He published a description of the plant in his seminal work Histoire de la Grande Isle de Madagascar. It reads:
. This species grows along the edges of swamps and in peaty or sandy soils at low altitudes.
Madagascar
The Republic of Madagascar is an island country located in the Indian Ocean off the southeastern coast of Africa...
) is one of two Nepenthes
Nepenthes
The Nepenthes , popularly known as tropical pitcher plants or monkey cups, are a genus of carnivorous plants in the monotypic family Nepenthaceae. The genus comprises roughly 130 species, numerous natural and many cultivated hybrids...
pitcher plant
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...
species native to Madagascar, the other being N. masoalensis
Nepenthes masoalensis
Nepenthes masoalensis is one of two tropical pitcher plant species from Madagascar, the other being N. madagascariensis.Nepenthes masoalensis is known only from eastern Madagascar; it occurs in the Masoala Peninsula and the Mount Ambato region. It has been recorded from Pandanus and Sphagnum...
.
Botanical history
Nepenthes madagascariensis was the first Nepenthes species to be discovered; Etienne de FlacourtÉtienne de Flacourt
Étienne de Flacourt was a French governor of Madagascar, born at Orléans in 1607. He was named governor of Madagascar by the French East India Company in 1648....
recorded it in 1658 under the name Amramatico. He published a description of the plant in his seminal work Histoire de la Grande Isle de Madagascar. It reads:
It is a plant growing about 3 feet high which carries at the end of its leaves, which are 7 inches long, a hollow flower or fruit resembling a small vase, with its own lid, a wonderful sight. There are red ones and yellow ones, the yellow being the biggest. The inhabitants of this country are reluctant to pick the flowers, saying that if somebody does pick them in passing, it will not fail to rain that day. As to that, I and all the other Frenchmen did pick them, but it did not rain. After rain these flowers are full of water, each one containing a good half-glass. [translated from French in Pitcher-Plants of BorneoPitcher-Plants of BorneoPitcher-Plants of Borneo is a monograph by Anthea Phillipps and Anthony Lamb on the tropical pitcher plants of Borneo. It was first published in 1996 by Natural History Publications , in association with the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and the Malaysian Nature Society...
]
Ecology
Nepenthes madagascariensis occurs along the eastern coast of Madagascar, as far north as the Masoala Peninsula. It is most common in the south of the island, around TôlanaroTôlanaro
Tôlanaro or Tolagnaro is a city in Madagascar. It is the capital of Anosy Region and of Tôlanaro District. It has a port of local importance, and a new port has been built at Ehoala...
. This species grows along the edges of swamps and in peaty or sandy soils at low altitudes.
Infraspecific taxa
- N. madagascariensis var. macrocarpa Scott Elliot (1891)
- N. madagascariensis var. cylindrica Dub. (1906)