Nepenthes clipeata

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

You have new messages (last change).

Nepenthes clipeata

Nepenthes clipeata. Cultivated plant.

Conservation status

Critically endangered (IUCN)

Scientific classification

Kingdom:	Plantae
Division:	Magnoliophyta
Class:	Magnoliopsida
Order:	Caryophyllales
Family:	Nepenthaceae
Genus:	Nepenthes
Species:	N. clipeata

Binomial name

Nepenthes clipeata
Danser (1928)

Distribution of N. clipeata.

Nepenthes clipeata (Latin: clipeus = round shield; referring to leaf shape) is a pitcher plant species of the genus Nepenthes known only from the near-vertical granite cliff faces of Mount Kelam in Kalimantan, Indonesia. It has an altitudinal distribution of approximately 600 to 800 m. N. clipeata is the most endangered of all Nepenthes species, with only an estimated 15 plants remaining in the wild as of 1995.^[1]

1 Discovery
2 Description
3 Conservation
4 Natural hybrids
5 References
6 External links

[edit] Discovery

Nepenthes clipeata was first collected by Johann Hallier in 1894. Hallier wrote an account of his discovery, which appeared in B. H. Danser's 1928 monograph The Nepenthaceae of the Netherlands Indies and has been translated from German as follows:^[2]^[3]

After once again climbing a steep slope with Gleichenia thickets, one stands suddenly beneath the high enclosing rock wall of the mountain ring. The smooth water-washed stone seamed with water channels shows no variation in structure, and it appears almost as if the whole mountain was composed of a single monstrous block of rock. On this wall has been erected the steep 45 metre high rattan ladder; it is secured only at the bottom, in the middle and in the solid earth at the top, the rest lying free against the stone... Just above the middle of the ladder a small thin patch of humus is found, just sufficient to allow one to stand and rest for a moment. Both here, and at the top of the ladder a Nepenthes plant with unusually large pitchers has established itself. In the basal part, the pitchers are expanded into a jug shape. They are thus able, on the one hand, to take up a large quantity of water, and on the other, to hinder the escape of insects which have fallen inside, by means of the relatively narrow neck.

[edit] Description

Nepenthes clipeata holotype (Hallier 2344).

N. clipeata is characterised by its peltate leaves, whereby the tendril joins the underside of the lamina before the apex. Pitchers are large and can be up to 30 cm high. They are globose at the base and slightly infundibulate (funnel-shaped) in the upper part. The species produces only one type of pitcher and the stem does not climb, reaching only 2 m in length. The inflorescence is small, rarely exceeding 25 cm. All parts of the plant are densely covered with an indumentum of long, brown hairs.^[4]

B. H. Danser wrote of this species in his monograph as follows:^[2]

N. clipeata is one of the most aberrant and striking species of its genus. Especially the almost orbicular leaves, the thick, short, never curved tendrils, which are inserted far from the apex, the peculiar-shaped pitcher without wings and the strongly vaulted lid are very remarkable. A leaf form as aberrant as this, only occurs in the Philippine species N. truncata. It is not known, in what manner N. clipeata grows. The following seems probable to me. The plant does not climb. The short and robust stems, petioles and tendrils prove, that the mentioned specimens are found in an open place. I can not imagine, in what manner the pitchers have been placed when the leaves were spread horizontally. Therefore I suggest, that the plant has grown against the perpendicular wall of the G. Kelam, and that the leaves stood vertically, the pitchers behind it. It is, however, improbable, that N. clipeata can grow only against perpendicular walls, but it is not clear, what may be the manner of growing in other habitats.

No forms or varieties of N. clipeata have been described.^[4]

[edit] Conservation

During the 1980s, Nepenthes collectors began to visit the mountain frequently and collect large numbers of plants. Local guides soon started to harvest specimens for their villages near the foot of the mountain. These rapidly perished and were replaced by new, freshly gathered specimens. Additional habitat stresses were caused by the El Niño of 1997/98 and frequent droughts and forest fires. The combination of these factors contributed to the rapid decline of wild populations of N. clipeata.^[5]

Despite this, N. clipeata is officially listed on CITES Appendix II and was until recently considered "Data Deficient" by the IUCN. There is little hope for the long-term survival of this species in the wild. The Nepenthes clipeata Survival Project (NcSP) has been set up by the International Carnivorous Plant Society (ICPS) to facilitate ex situ conservation of the species. It is unknown how many genetically distinct lines of white market plants exist in cultivation, but estimates place the number at three to four.^[5]

[edit] Natural hybrids

N. albomarginata × N. clipeata
N. clipeata × N. reinwardtiana

[edit] References

^ Simpson, R.B. 1995. Nepenthes and conservation. Curtis's Botanical Magazine 12: 111-118.
^ ^a ^b Danser, B.H. 1928. The Nepenthaceae of the Netherlands Indies. Bulletin de Jardin de Botanique, Buitenzorg, Série III, 9(3-4): 249-438.
^ Phillipps, A. & A. Lamb 1996. Pitcher Plants of Borneo. Natural History Publications (Borneo), Kota Kinabalu.
^ ^a ^b Clarke, C.M. 1997. Nepenthes of Borneo. Natural History Publications (Borneo), Kota Kinabalu.
^ ^a ^b Cantley, R., C.M. Clarke, J. Cokendolpher, B. Rice & A. Wistuba 2004. Nepenthes clipeata Survival Project.

Clarke et al. (2000). Nepenthes clipeata. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 06 May 2006. Listed as Critically Endangered (CR A1a, B1+2e, D v2.3).