MONSTERA BARRIERI

PROTOLOGUE: Monstera barrieri Croat, Moonen & Poncy, published in Rodriguesia 56: 61 (2005).

Monstera barrieri Croat, Moonen, & Poncy, sp. nov. Planta hemiepiphytica usque ad 10 m supra terram crescens. Internodia adulta brevia, ca. 2 cm diam. Folia juvenalia patentia, petiolo 2–2.5 cm longo, lamina anguste oblongo-lanceolata 5.5–8 cm longa. Folia adulta petiolo (13—)18–41 cm, lamina pinnatisecta, inaequilatera, 36–58 cm longa, 31–37 cm lata. Inflorescentia pedunculo (12—)16.5–19 cm longo, in vivo usque ad 1 cm (in sicco usque ad 6 mm) diam.; spatha cremea 15–23 cm longa, ca. 4.5 cm lata; spadice in vivo cremeo, in sicco nigrescente, in vivo 6–13 cm longo, ca. 2 cm diam., maturitate in sicco 9–12 cm longo, 1.8–2 cm diam.; axe in sectione tranversali vinoso vel aurantiaco, ca. 7 mm diam. Type: French Guiana. Fleuve Approuague, Rivier Arataye, Sauts Parare, Feb. 1981, S. Barrier & C. Feuillet 2719 (holotype P; isotypes K, MO, NY, U).

DISTRIBUTION: French Guiana: French Guiana.

SPECIES DESCRIPTION:

Hemiepiphyte to 10 m high in trees; juvenile plants with blades petiolate, not shingled; stem drying blackened, closely and acutely ridged; petioles 2–2.5 cm long, sheathed almost throughout, the margins turned inward, the sheath apex narrowly rounded at least on one side, the free portion sharply sulcate; blades subcoriaceous, narrowly oblong-lanceolate, 5.5– cm long, 5 times longer than wide, drying matte on both surfaces; pre-adult plants with petioles 6.5–9 cm long, narrowly sheathed almost to the apex; preadult blades narrowly ovatelanceolate 17.5–18.5 cm long, 21–21 cm wide, deeply 4–6-lobed, 4.3–6 cm wide, 2.9– 4.2 times longer than wide, pinnately lobed with 1–4 narrow lobes divided to or almost to the base; adult plants with stem assymetrical, to 2 cm diam.; internodes shorter than broad; petioles (13)18–41 cm long, sheathed to within 8 cm of base of blade; blades 36–58 cm long; 31–37 cm wide; pinnae 7–9 pairs, 17–26 cm long, 0.6–1.8 cm wide, 2–6 cm apart, most with a single medial rib, sometimes 2-ribbed, the upper edge ending abruptly on the midrib, the lower margin broadly confluent on the midrib and ending usually near the emergence of the next lower lobe; upper surface drying blackened and matte, minutely papillate; lower surface drying blackish yellow-brown, weakly glossy and only slightly paler; midrib obtusely sunken and concolorous above (drying deeply sunken), drying narrowly and obtusely raised and slightly brownish below; primary lateral veins 2–4 per side, arising at 15–20° angle, drying darker than surface, acute to bluntly raised, with numerous whitish linear cellular inclusions; sinus narrowly linear-lanceolate in outline; lateral lobes 2–12 mm wide, narrowly tapering to an acicular apex, sometimes still weakly connecting to the adjacent segment.²

INFLORESCENCE:

Inflorescences 2 per axil; peduncle medium-dark green, (12)16.5–19 cm long, to 1 cm diam., to 6 mm diam. on drying, blackened; spathe creamy white, matte outside, only slightly paler inside, moderately coriaceous, markedly cucullate with the apical portion directed forward and hooding the opening, 15–23 cm long, 4.5 cm wide at anthesis (flattening to 11 cm wide), weakly convolute at the base for up to 2.5 cm with the lateral margins markedly folded and with the apical ½ protruding forward at almost a 90° to the axis of the spathe, acuminate at apex; spadix cylindroid, weakly tapered toward both ends, narrowly rounded at apex, 6–13 cm long, 2 cm diam., creamy white, deep wine-red to orange in cross-section, drying blackened, 9–12 cm long, 1.8–2 cm diam. at maturity, the axis ca. 7 mm wide; pistils ca. 7 mm long, creamy white; style about as broad as the pistil, tapered weakly to a nipple-like stigma; stamens white, held at about 2/3 the length of the pistils; anthers with thecae oblong, closely parallel, ca. 3 mm long; unripened. Infructescence pale green, sometimes with the old spathe persisting from base, the berries acute at apex.²

ETYMOLOGY:

Named in honor of Serge Barrier, who collected the type with C. Feuillet on the Arataye River, French Guiana, in February 1981.²

REFERENCES:

1. Plants of the World Online, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew — Monstera barrieri Croat, Moonen & Poncy

2. Rodriguesia 56: 61 (2005) — protologue.

3. iNaturalist: Monstera barrieri

Additional photo by David Scherberich

Additional photos from iNaturalist by Sébastien SANT, Guillaume Delaitre, Alex Karasoulos and Mathilde Segers