Nepenthes paniculata (/nɪˈpɛnθiːz ˌpænɪkjʊˈlɑːtə/; from Latin panicula "panicle") is a tropical pitcher plant belonging to the genus Nepenthes.
Nepenthes paniculata | |
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Lower (top) and upper pitchers from the Doorman Massif, New Guinea | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Order: | Caryophyllales |
Family: | Nepenthaceae |
Genus: | Nepenthes |
Species: | N. paniculata
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Binomial name | |
Nepenthes paniculata |
Nepenthes paniculata is probably endemic to Doorman Top, a mountain in New Guinea (03°28′01″S 138°26′59″E / 3.46694°S 138.44972°E). In recent times it has been recorded from mossy forest on a ridge top at 1,460 m altitude.[1][3][4]
No forms or varieties of this species have been described. It may form natural hybrids with N. papuana.[5]
In 1994, A. Wistuba, H. Rischer, B. Baumgartl, and B. Kistler explored Doorman Top in search of N. paniculata but found no Nepenthes other than N. lamii (then known as N. vieillardii) and N. maxima.[6] However, they climbed a different slope to the one from which N. paniculata was originally collected.[6]
In August 2013, the species was rediscovered by a team consisting of Holger Gossner, Thomas Gronemeyer, David Marwinski, Stewart McPherson, Marius Micheler, Joachim Nerz, Andreas Wistuba, and Urs Zimmermann.[7][8][9][5] This expedition was the first to document the lower pitchers, which superficially resemble those of N. merrilliana and species related to it from the Philippines.[10]