''Nepenthes smilesii'' () is a tropical

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 ...

native to northeastern

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is b ...

, southern Laos,

Cambodia Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailan ...

,Mey, F.S. 2010. ''Cambodian Journal of Natural History'' 2010(2): 106–117.Mey, F.S. 2009
''N. smilesii'' in Kampot, Cambodia
Carnivorous Plants in the tropics. and

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

.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 ...

''. 2 volumes. Redfern Natural History Productions, Poole. Catalano, M. 2010. '' Nepenthes della Thailandia: Diario di viaggio''. Prague.Nunn, R. & C.N.A. Vu 2016. An account of the ''Nepenthes'' species of Vietnam. ''

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 ...

'' 45(3): 93–101. ''Nepenthes smilesii'' can tolerate an extended

dry season The dry season is a yearly period of low rainfall, especially in the tropics. The weather in the tropics is dominated by the tropical rain belt, which moves from the northern to the southern tropics and back over the course of the year. The te ...

and is most common in open, sandy savannah and

grassland A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses ( Poaceae). However, sedge ( Cyperaceae) and rush ( Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur na ...

. The specific epithet ''smilesii'' refers to plant collector Frederick Henry Smiles, who made the first known collection of this species.

Botanical history

''Nepenthes anamensis'' is a

heterotypic 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, Linn ...

of ''N. smilesii''. Its

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 conservatio ...

appears as Data Deficient on the

IUCN Red List The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biol ...

. ''Nepenthes smilesii'' was referred to as ''N. anamensis'' throughout most of the 20th century. Further confusion resulted from the erroneous labelling of ''N. smilesii'' plants as '' N. thorelii'' in the horticultural trade. In ''

'', Stewart McPherson lists ''N. mirabilis'' f. ''smilesii'' and ''N. mirabilis'' var. ''smilesii'' as synonyms of ''N. smilesii'', but Marcello Catalano considers these to represent normal forms of '' N. mirabilis''.

Description

''Nepenthes smilesii'' is a climbing plant growing to a height of 5 m. Its leaves are

sessile Sessility, or sessile, may refer to: * Sessility (motility), organisms which are not able to move about * Sessility (botany), flowers or leaves that grow directly from the stem or peduncle of a plant * Sessility (medicine), tumors and polyps that ...

and

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 ...

(leathery) in texture. They are very narrowly linear, reaching 40 cm in length while only up to 4 cm wide.

Ecology

''Nepenthes smilesii'' has a widespread distribution throughout

Indochina Mainland Southeast Asia, also known as the Indochinese Peninsula or Indochina, is the continental portion of Southeast Asia. It lies east of the Indian subcontinent and south of Mainland China and is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the west an ...

. It has been recorded from

, northeastern

, southern Laos, and western

. The species occurs across a wide range of altitudes, being recorded from elevations of 16–1500 m above sea level, although it is more typically found at around 800 m. ''Nepenthes smilesii'' is notable among the Indochinese ''Nepenthes'' for experiencing extreme lows of temperature. Individual specimens of a

natural hybrid In biology, a hybrid is the offspring resulting from combining the qualities of two organisms of different breeds, varieties, species or genera through sexual reproduction. Hybrids are not always intermediates between their parents (such as in ...

between ''N. smilesii'' and '' N. mirabilis'' have been recorded from

.Mey, F.S., L.H. Truong, D.V. Dai & A.S. Robinson 2011. ''Nepenthes thorelii'', an emended description and novel ecological data resulting from its rediscovery in Tay Ninh, Vietnam. In: McPherson, S.R. '' New Nepenthes: Volume One''. Redfern Natural History Productions, Poole. pp. 104–131.

Related species

''Nepenthes smilesii'' appears most closely allied to '' N. kongkandana'' and may be difficult to distinguish from that species. It differs primarily in the shape of its laminae, which are linear to

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 ...

with an acute apex, as opposed to

obovate 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 ...

with an

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 ...

apex in the latter. ''Nepenthes smilesii'' also differs in having shorter tendrils and a narrower peristome.

Notes

:a.''Nepenthes anamensis'' is pronounced . The specific epithet is derived from Annam, a former territory in central

References

External links

{{Taxonbar, from=Q4912563 Carnivorous plants of Asia smilesii Flora of Indo-China Plants described in 1895