''Nepenthes longifolia'' () is a

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 ...

pitcher plant Pitcher plants are several different carnivorous plants which have modified leaves known as pitfall traps—a prey-trapping mechanism featuring a deep cavity filled with digestive liquid. The traps of what are considered to be "true" pitcher p ...

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

Sumatra Sumatra is one of the Sunda Islands of western Indonesia. It is the largest island that is fully within Indonesian territory, as well as the sixth-largest island in the world at 473,481 km2 (182,812 mi.2), not including adjacent i ...

, where it grows at elevations of between 300 and 1100 m

above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of the vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) of a location in reference to a historic mean sea level taken as a vertical datum. In geodesy, it is formalized as ''orthometric heights''. The comb ...

. The

specific epithet In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...

''longifolia'', formed from the

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

words ''longus'' (long) and ''folius'' (leaf), refers to the exceptionally large leaves of this species.Clarke, C.M. 2001. ''

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 (Borneo ...

''. Natural History Publications (Borneo), Kota Kinabalu.

Botanical history

The first known collection of ''N. longifolia'' was made by

Willem Meijer Willem Meijer (1923 – 22 October 2003) 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. Meijer travelled to J ...

in 1957. The specimen ''Meijer 6913'' was collected on August 24, 1957, in a

sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates) ...

region of the river Tjampo near Taram in

West Sumatra West Sumatra ( id, Sumatra Barat) is a Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia. It is located on the west coast of the island of Sumatra and includes the Mentawai Islands off that coast. The province has an area of , with a population of 5, ...

, 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 may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...

Leiden Leiden (; in English and archaic Dutch also Leyden) is a city and municipality in the province of South Holland, Netherlands. The municipality of Leiden has a population of 119,713, but the city forms one densely connected agglomeration wit ...

. In 1986, Rusjdi Tamin and

Mitsuru Hotta (23 July 1935 – 8 July 2015) was a Japanese botanist best known for his research on Araceae.van Steenis-Kruseman, M.J., ''et al.'' 2006Cyclopaedia of Malesian Collectors: Mitsuru Hotta Nationaal Herbarium Nederland. Hotta was born in Osaka, ...

invalidly described ''

Nepenthes rafflesiana ''Nepenthes rafflesiana'' (; after Stamford Raffles), or Raffles' pitcher-plant,Phillipps, A. & A. Lamb 1996. ''Pitcher-Plants of Borneo''. Natural History Publications (Borneo), Kota Kinabalu. is a species of tropical pitcher plant. It has a ver ...

'' var. ''longicirrhosa''.

Charles Clarke Charles Rodway Clarke (born 21 September 1950) is a British Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Norwich South from 1997 until 2010, and served as Home Secretary from December 2004 until May 2006. Early life Th ...

observed this

taxon In biology, a taxon (back-formation from ''taxonomy''; plural taxa) is a group of one or more populations of an organism or organisms seen by taxonomists to form a unit. Although neither is required, a taxon is usually known by a particular nam ...

at the type locality in 1995 and concluded that it is conspecific with ''N. longifolia''.Clarke, C. .1997
Another Nice Trip to Sumatra
''

Carnivorous Plant Newsletter The ''Carnivorous Plant Newsletter'' is the official publication of the International Carnivorous Plant Society (ICPS), the largest such organization in the world. It is headquartered in Walnut Creek, California. History and editorship The newsle ...

'' 26(1): 4–10. Subsequent revisions of the genus have formally synonymised these taxa. ''Nepenthes longifolia'' was formally described by

Joachim Nerz Dr. Joachim Nerz (born 1964) is a German taxonomist and botanist specialising in the carnivorous plant genera ''Heliamphora'' and '' Nepenthes''. Nerz has described several new species, mostly with Andreas Wistuba. Publications * Schlauer, J. ...

and

Andreas Wistuba Andreas Wistuba (born 4 March 1967) 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. Pub ...

in a 1994 issue of the ''

''. The

holotype A holotype is a single physical example (or illustration) of an organism, known to have been used when the species (or lower-ranked taxon) was formally described. It is either the single such physical example (or illustration) or one of several ...

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

. 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

(L) together with the holotype, while ''Nerz 2806'', ''2807'', and ''2808'' are held at the Institut für Biologie I at the

University of Tübingen The University of Tübingen, officially the Eberhard Karl University of Tübingen (german: Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen; la, Universitas Eberhardina Carolina), is a public research university located in the city of Tübingen, Baden-Wü ...

(TUB) in Germany.

Matthew Jebb Matthew Hilary Peter Jebb (born 1958) is an Irish botanist and taxonomist specialising in the ant plant genera ''Squamellaria'', ''Myrmecodia'', ''Hydnophytum'', ''Myrmephytum'' and ''Anthorrhiza'', as well as the carnivorous plant genus ''Nepe ...

and

Martin Cheek Martin Roy Cheek (born 1960) is a botanist and taxonomist at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.N. sumatrana'' in their 1997 monograph, " A skeletal revision of ''Nepenthes'' (Nepenthaceae)". The authors tentatively upheld this synonymy in their 2001 revision, " Nepenthaceae", writing:

Although we treat ''N. longifolia'' as a synonym f ''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

, ''

'' (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. Internodes are sub-cylindrical in cross section and up to 12 cm long. Leaves are

coriaceous This glossary of botanical terms is a list of definitions of terms and concepts relevant to botany and plants in general. Terms of plant morphology are included here as well as at the more specific Glossary of plant morphology and Glossary o ...

in texture. The

lamina Lamina may refer to: Science and technology * Planar lamina, a two-dimensional planar closed surface with mass and density, in mathematics * Laminar flow, (or streamline flow) occurs when a fluid flows in parallel layers, with no disruption betwee ...

lanceolate The following is a list of terms which are used to describe leaf morphology in the description and taxonomy of plants. Leaves may be simple (a single leaf blade or lamina) or compound (with several leaflets). The edge of the leaf may be regular o ...

to lanceolate-

spathulate This glossary of botanical terms is a list of definitions of terms and concepts relevant to botany and plants in general. Terms of plant morphology are included here as well as at the more specific Glossary of plant morphology and Glossary o ...

or lanceolate-obovate in shape and up to 55 cm long and 9 cm wide. It has an

emarginate The following is a list of terms which are used to describe leaf morphology in the description and taxonomy of plants. Leaves may be simple (a single leaf blade or lamina) or compound (with several leaflets). The edge of the leaf may be regular o ...

apex. The lamina is gradually

attenuate In physics, attenuation (in some contexts, extinction) is the gradual loss of flux intensity through a medium. For instance, dark glasses attenuate sunlight, lead attenuates X-rays, and water and air attenuate both light and sound at variable a ...

into a short petiole (≤7 cm). The petiole is

decurrent ''Decurrent'' (sometimes decurring) is a term used in botany and mycology to describe plant or fungal parts that extend downward. In botany, the term is most often applied to leaf blades that partly wrap or have wings around the stem or petio ...

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 This glossary of botanical terms is a list of definitions of terms and concepts relevant to botany and plants in general. Terms of plant morphology are included here as well as at the more specific Glossary of plant morphology and Glossary o ...

Pinnate Pinnation (also called pennation) is the arrangement of feather-like or multi-divided features arising from both sides of a common axis. Pinnation occurs in biological morphology, in crystals, such as some forms of ice or metal crystals, and in ...

veins are numerous but indistinct.

Tendril In botany, a tendril is a specialized stem, leaf or petiole with a threadlike shape used by climbing plants for support and attachment, as well as cellular invasion by parasitic plants such as ''Cuscuta''. There are many plants that have tendr ...

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 Ventricose is an adjective describing the condition of a mushroom, gastropod or plant that it is "swollen, distended, or inflated especially on one side". Mycology In mycology, ventricose is a condition in which the cystidia, lamella or stipe of a ...

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 The following is a list of terms which are used to describe leaf morphology in the description and taxonomy of plants. Leaves may be simple (a single leaf blade or lamina) or compound (with several leaflets). The edge of the leaf may be regular o ...

towards the lid. The

peristome Peristome (from the Greek ''peri'', meaning 'around' or 'about', and ''stoma'', 'mouth') is an anatomical feature that surrounds an opening to an organ or structure. Some plants, fungi, and shelled gastropods have peristomes. In mosses In mosses, ...

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 In animals, a gland is a group of cells in an animal's body that synthesizes substances (such as hormones) for release into the bloodstream (endocrine gland) or into cavities inside the body or its outer surface (exocrine gland). Structure De ...

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 Orbicular is an adjective meaning "circular" Orbicular may also refer to: * Orbicular leaf, a plant leaf shape * Orbicularis oculi muscle, a muscle around the eye * Orbicularis oris muscle, a muscle around the mouth * Orbicular batfish, a specie ...

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 A spur is a metal tool designed to be worn in pairs on the heels of riding boots for the purpose of directing a horse or other animal to move forward or laterally while riding. It is usually used to refine the riding aids (commands) and to back ...

(≤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 An infundibulum (Latin for ''funnel''; plural, ''infundibula'') is a funnel-shaped cavity or organ. Anatomy * Brain: the pituitary stalk, also known as the ''infundibulum'' and ''infundibular stalk'', is the connection between the hypothalamus and ...

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 A raceme ( or ) or racemoid is an unbranched, indeterminate type of inflorescence bearing flowers having short floral stalks along the shoots that bear the flowers. The oldest flowers grow close to the base and new flowers are produced as the s ...

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. Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed o ...

. Male and female inflorescences have the same structure. The peduncle is up to 25 cm long and 3 mm wide. The

rachis In biology, a rachis (from the grc, ῥάχις [], "backbone, spine") is a main axis or "shaft". In zoology and microbiology In vertebrates, ''rachis'' can refer to the series of articulated vertebrae, which encase the spinal cord. In this c ...

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 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 usually different from foliage leaves. They may be smaller, larger, or of ...

eolate.

Sepal A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 The term ''sepalum'' was coined b ...

s are ovate and up to 5 mm long.

Stamen The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filame ...

s are approximately 5 mm long including the

anther The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filam ...

Seed A seed is an embryonic plant enclosed in a protective outer covering, along with a food reserve. The formation of the seed is a part of the process of reproduction in seed plants, the spermatophytes, including the gymnosperm and angiospe ...

capsules are up to 3 cm long. Most parts of the plant bear a short, sparse

indumentum In biology, an indumentum (Latin, literally: "garment") is a covering of trichomes (fine "hairs") on a plant Davis, Peter Hadland and Heywood, Vernon Hilton (1963) ''Principles of angiosperm taxonomy'' Van Nostrandpage, Princeton, New Jersey, pa ...

of simple and stellate hairs. However, many of these hairs are

caducous Dehiscence is the splitting of a mature plant structure along a built-in line of weakness to release its contents. This is common among fruits, anthers and sporangia. Sometimes this involves the complete detachment of a part; structures that op ...

and so mature plants appear mostly

glabrous Glabrousness (from the Latin ''glaber'' meaning "bald", "hairless", "shaved", "smooth") is the technical term for a lack of hair, down, setae, trichomes or other such covering. A glabrous surface may be a natural characteristic of all or part of ...

. 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

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''Roman province, provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire ...

and may also be present in

North Sumatra North Sumatra ( id, Sumatra Utara) is a province of Indonesia located on the northern part of the island of Sumatra. Its capital and largest city is Medan. North Sumatra is Indonesia's fourth most populous province after West Java, East Java and ...

. It grows terrestrially in dense, shady lowland or sub

montane forest Montane ecosystems are found on the slopes of mountains. The alpine climate in these regions strongly affects the ecosystem because temperatures fall as elevation increases, causing the ecosystem to stratify. This stratification is a crucial f ...

on steep

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 Sibolga (formerly sometimes Siboga) is a city and a port located in the natural harbor of Sibolga Bay 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 ...

Tarutung Tarutung (Dutch: ) is a town and the administrative capital (seat) of North Tapanuli Regency (''Kabupaten Tapanuli Utara''), North Sumatra, Sumatra, Indonesia. in the Batak language means "durian The durian (, ) is the edible fruit of se ...

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 The conservation status of a group of organisms (for instance, a species) indicates whether the group still exists and how likely the group is to become extinct in the near future. Many factors are taken into account when assessing conservation ...

for both taxa is listed as

Least Concern A least-concern species is a species that has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as evaluated as not being a focus of species conservation because the specific species is still plentiful in the wild. T ...

. However, recent studies have shown that these two

taxa In biology, a taxon (back-formation from ''taxonomy''; plural taxa) is a group of one or more populations of an organism or organisms seen by taxonomists to form a unit. Although neither is required, a taxon is usually known by a particular nam ...

are distinct species. In 2001,

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 Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating Plant, plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of Sedentism, sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of Domestication, domesticated species created food ...

purposes.

Related species

''Nepenthes longifolia'' is thought to be most closely related to '' N. sumatrana''; 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

in North Sumatra. They are atypical of the species in that the leaf bases are not

along the internode, some of the hairs lining the leaf margins are

, 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 John Muirhead Macfarlane FRSE LLD (28 September 1855, Kirkcaldy, Fife – 16 September 1943, Lancaster) was a Scottish botanist. Life He was born in Kirkcaldy in Fife on 28 September 1855. He was educated locally, then studied sciences at the ...

in 1908 based on a specimen collected on

Nias Nias ( id, Pulau Nias, Nias language: ''Tanö Niha'') (sometimes called Little Sumatra in English) is an island located off the western coast of Sumatra, Indonesia. Nias is also the name of the archipelago () of which the island is the centre, ...

, 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 "The Nepenthaceae of the Netherlands Indies" is a seminal monograph by B. H. Danser on the tropical pitcher plants of the Dutch East Indies and surrounding regions. It was originally published in the ''Bulletin du Jardin Botanique de Buitenzorg'' ...

", although he did not see the type specimen of ''N. beccariana''.Danser, B.H. 1928.

. ''Bulletin du Jardin Botanique de Buitenzorg'', Série III, 9(3–4): 249–438. In 2000,

Jan Schlauer Jan, JaN or JAN may refer to: Acronyms * Jackson, Mississippi (Amtrak station), US, Amtrak station code JAN * Jackson-Evers International Airport, Mississippi, US, IATA code * Jabhat al-Nusra (JaN), a Syrian militant group * Japanese Article Numb ...

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.Schlauer, J. & C. Nepi 2000. Notes on ''Nepenthes'' (Nepenthaceae). II. Lectotypification of names based on material represented in the Herbarium Beccarianum. ''Webbia'' 55: 1–5.

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 The Botanical and Zoological Codes of nomenclature treat the concept of synonymy differently. * In botanical nomenclature, a synonym is a scientific name that applies to a taxon that (now) goes by a different scientific name. For example, Linna ...

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 Cladistics (; ) is an approach to biological classification in which organisms are categorized in groups ("clades") based on hypotheses of most recent common ancestry. The evidence for hypothesized relationships is typically shared derived chara ...

of the ''Nepenthes'' species of Sumatra and

Peninsular Malaysia Peninsular Malaysia ( ms, Semenanjung Malaysia; Jawi: سمننجڠ مليسيا), or the States of Malaya ( ms, Negeri-negeri Tanah Melayu; Jawi: نڬري-نڬري تانه ملايو), also known as West Malaysia or the Malaysian Peninsula, ...

based on 70 morphological characteristics of each taxon. The following is a portion of the resultant

cladogram A cladogram (from Greek ''clados'' "branch" and ''gramma'' "character") is a diagram used in cladistics to show relations among organisms. A cladogram is not, however, an evolutionary tree because it does not show how ancestors are related to d ...

, 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''.

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. eustachya'' is known with confidence, although it may also hybridise with '' N. sumatrana''.McPherson, S.R. 2009. ''

Pitcher Plants of the Old World ''Pitcher Plants of the Old World'' is a two-volume monograph by Stewart McPherson on the pitcher plants of the genera ''Nepenthes'' and ''Cephalotus''. It was published in May 2009 by Redfern Natural History Productions and covers all species kno ...

''. 2 volumes. Redfern Natural History Productions, Poole. ''

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'' (true) and ''stachys'' (spike), refers to the ...

'' × ''N. longifolia'' has been recorded from a number of locations near

Payakumbuh Payakumbuh (Indonesian: Kota Payakumbuh, Minangkabau: Payokumbuah, Jawi: ) is the second largest city in West Sumatra province, Indonesia, with a population of 116,825 at the 2010 Census and 139,576 at the 2020 Census. It covers an area of 80.4 ...

and

, 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''.

Notes

:a.Meijer explored the forest of the Tjampo region between August 20 and August 28.van Steenis-Kruseman, M.J., ''et al.'' 2006
Cyclopaedia of Malesian Collectors: Prof.dr. Willem ('Wim') Meijer
Nationaal Herbarium Nederland. He collected ''N. longifolia'' on August 24 together with the type material of '' N. adnata'' and '' N. tenuis''. :b.The original

description of ''N. longifolia'' reads:

Folia mediocria, lamina oblongavel lanceolata, nervis longitudionalibus utrinque 3-4, basi in alas 2 decurrente ; Ascidia rosularum mediocria, parte inferiore ventricosa os versus cylindrica, ails 2 fimbriatis; ascidia facie ventrali sub peristomio elevata quomodo peristomio inter alis distinctissime undulato, operculum versus acuminato et elevato, ad 6 mm lato, costis 0,2 mm distantibus , dentibus 0. Operculo orbiculari, facie inferiore plano. Ascidia superioria magna, e parte inferiore anguste infundibuliformi tubulosa, costis 2 prominentibus, ascidia facie ventrali sub peristomio elevata quomodo peristomio inter alis distinctissime undulato, operculum versus acuminato et elevato, ad 6 mm lato, costis 0,2 mm distantibus, dentibus 0. Operculo orbiculari, facie inferiore piano. Inflorescentia racemus, pedicellis 1-1,2 cm longis, omnibus 2-floris. Indumentum parcum breve patens.

:c.The upper altitudinal limit of ''N. longifolia'' is given as 1200 m in a comparison table on page 158 of ''

'', but appears as 1100 m elsewhere in the book, and this latter value is the one included in subsequent works on the genus.McPherson, S.R. 2011. '' New Nepenthes: Volume One''. Redfern Natural History Productions, Poole.McPherson, S.R. & A. Robinson 2012. ''

Field Guide to the Pitcher Plants of Sumatra and Java This list of ''Nepenthes'' literature is a listing of major published works dealing with the tropical pitcher plants of the genus ''Nepenthes''. It includes specialised standalone publications and taxonomic monographs released as part of larger ...

''. Redfern Natural History Productions, Poole.

References

External links

''Nepenthes longifolia'' in its natural habitat
{{Taxonbar, from=Q13652516 longifolia Endemic flora of Sumatra Carnivorous plants of Asia Plants described in 1994