''Epipremnum'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...

s in the

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

Araceae, found in

tropical The tropics are the regions of Earth surrounding the Equator. They are defined in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the Northern Hemisphere at N and the Tropic of Capricorn in the Southern Hemisphere at S. The tropics are also referred to ...

forests from China, the

Himalayas The Himalayas, or Himalaya (; ; ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the planet's highest peaks, including the very highest, Mount Everest. Over 10 ...

, and

Southeast Asia Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical south-eastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of mainlan ...

to Australia the western

Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the contine ...

.Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
/ref> They are

evergreen In botany, an evergreen is a plant which has foliage that remains green and functional through more than one growing season. This also pertains to plants that retain their foliage only in warm climates, and contrasts with deciduous plants, whic ...

perennial A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wid ...

vines climbing with the aid of

aerial roots Aerial roots are roots above the ground. They are almost always adventitious. They are found in diverse plant species, including epiphytes such as orchids (''Orchidaceae''), tropical coastal swamp trees such as mangroves, banyan figs (''Fic ...

. They may be confused with other Monstereae such as '' Rhaphidophora'', ''

Scindapsus ''Scindapsus'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Araceae. It is native to Southeast Asia, New Guinea, Queensland, and a few western Pacific islands. The species ''Scindapsus pictus'' is common in cultivation. ''Scindapsus'' is not ea ...

'' and '' Amydrium''. All parts of the plants are toxic, mostly due to trichosclereids (long sharp cells) and

raphides Raphides (pronounced /ˈræfɪˌdiz/, singular raphide /ˈreɪfʌɪd/ or raphis) are needle-shaped crystals of calcium oxalate monohydrate ( prismatic monoclinic crystals) or calcium carbonate as aragonite ( dipyramidal orthorhombic crystals), ...

. Plants can grow to over with leaves up to long, but in containers the size is much reduced. The plants, commonly known as centipede tongavine, pothos or devil's ivy, depending on species, are typically grown as

houseplants A houseplant, sometimes known as a pot plant, potted plant, or an indoor plant, is an ornamental plant that is grown indoors. As such, they are found in places like residences and offices, mainly for decorative purposes. Common houseplants are us ...

temperate In geography, the temperate climates of Earth occur in the middle latitudes (23.5° to 66.5° N/S of Equator), which span between the tropics and the polar regions of Earth. These zones generally have wider temperature ranges throughout ...

regions. Juvenile leaves are bright green, often with irregularly variegated patterns of yellow or white. They may find host trees by the use of Skototropism. Dragon-Tail Plant (Epipremnum pinnatum) 6

Dragon-Tail Plant (Epipremnum pinnatum) 6

Etymology

From the Greek ἐπί (upon) and πρέμνον (stump).

Species

#'' Epipremnum amplissimum'' (Schott) Engl. - Queensland, New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Bismarck Archipelago, Vanuatu #''

Epipremnum aureum ''Epipremnum aureum'' is a species in the arum family Araceae, native to Mo'orea in the Society Islands of French Polynesia. The species is a popular houseplant in temperate regions but has also become naturalised in tropical and sub-tropical fore ...

'' (Linden & André) G.S.Bunting - native to Moorea in Polynesia; naturalized in Africa, the Indian Subcontinent, Queensland, Melanesia, Seychelles, Hawaii, Florida, Costa Rica, Bermuda, the West Indies, Brazil, and Ecuador #'' Epipremnum carolinense'' Volkens - Micronesia #'' Epipremnum ceramense'' (Engl. & K.Krause) Alderw. - Maluku #'' Epipremnum dahlii'' Engl. - Bismarck Archipelago #'' Epipremnum falcifolium'' Engl. - Borneo #'' Epipremnum giganteum'' (Roxb.) Schott - Indochina (Syn. ''Monstera gigantea'' (Roxb.) Schot) #'' Epipremnum meeboldii'' K.Krause - Manipur region of India #'' Epipremnum moluccanum'' Schott - Maluku #'' Epipremnum moszkowskii'' K.Krause - western New Guinea #'' Epipremnum nobile'' (Schott) Engl. - Sulawesi #'' Epipremnum obtusum'' Engl. & K.Krause - Papua New Guinea #'' Epipremnum papuanum'' Alderw. - Papua New Guinea #'' Epipremnum pinnatum'' (L.) Engl. - widespread across Southeast Asia, southern China, New Guinea, Melanesia, northern Australia; naturalized in West Indies #'' Epipremnum silvaticum'' Alderw. Sumatra

Fossil record

fossil A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved ...

seeds of †''Epipremnum crassum'' have been described from middle Miocene strata of the Fasterholt area near

Silkeborg Silkeborg () is a Danish town with a population of 49,747 (1 January 2022).Central Jutland,

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...

. Fossils of this species have also been reported from the Oligocene and

Miocene The Miocene ( ) is the first epoch (geology), geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and mea ...

Western Siberia Western Siberia or West Siberia (russian: Западная Сибирь, Zapadnaya Sibir'; kk, Батыс Сібір) is a part of the larger region of Siberia that is mostly located in the Russian Federation. It lies between the Ural region an ...

and the

and

Pliocene The Pliocene ( ; also Pleiocene) is the epoch in the geologic time scale that extends from 5.333 million to 2.58Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

.Angiosperm Fruits and Seeds from the Middle Miocene of Jutland (Denmark) by

Else Marie Friis Else Marie Friis (born 18 June 1947) is a Danish botanist and paleontologist. She is Professor Emerita in the Department of Geoscience at Aarhus University. Her work has been fundamental in the phylogenetic analysis of angiosperms, with widespr ...

Etymology

Species

Fossil record

References

Bibliography

External links