- Nepenthes albomarginata
-
Nepenthes albomarginata 
A pair of lower pitchers of N. albomarginata from Bako National Park, Borneo, where it often grows in heath forest and scrub vegetation[1] Conservation status Scientific classification Kingdom: Plantae (unranked): Angiosperms (unranked): Eudicots (unranked): Core eudicots Order: Caryophyllales Family: Nepenthaceae Genus: Nepenthes Species: N. albomarginata Binomial name Nepenthes albomarginata
T.Lobb ex Lindl. (1849)Synonyms - Nepenthes albocincta
Hort. ex Macf. (1908) nom.nud. - Nepenthes albocincta var. rubra
Hort. ex Macf. (1908) - Nepenthes laevis
auct. non Lindl.: C.Morr. (1852) - Nepenthes teysmanniana
Miq. (1858)
[=N. albomarginata/N. gracilis] - Nepenthes tomentella
Miq. (1855) - Nepenthes tupmanniana
Bonst. (1931) sphalm.typogr.
Nepenthes albomarginata (
/nɨˈpɛnθiːz ˌælbɵˌmɑrdʒɨˈnɑːtə/), the White-Collared Pitcher-Plant,[2] is a tropical pitcher plant native to Borneo, Peninsular Malaysia, and Sumatra.[3][4] The specific epithet albomarginata, formed from the Latin words albus (white) and marginatus (margin), refers to the white band of trichomes that is characteristic of this species.[3]Contents
Botanical history
Nepenthes albomarginata was first collected by Thomas Lobb in 1848. It was formally described a year later by John Lindley in The Gardeners' Chronicle.[2]
The species was introduced into cultivation in the United Kingdom in 1856.[2]
Description
Nepenthes albomarginata is a climbing plant. The stem may reach lengths of up to 4 m and is up to 5 mm in diameter. Internodes are cylindrical in cross section and up to 15 cm long.[5]
Upper pitchers of two colour forms from Bako National Park, SarawakLeaves are coriaceous in texture. The lamina or leaf blade is lanceolate in shape and up to 25 cm long by 2 cm wide. It has an acute apex and its base is gradually attenuate and amplexicaul. The leaves of this species are characteristic in that they completely lack a petiole. Longitudinal veins are indistinct. Tendrils are up to 20 cm long.[5]
Rosette and lower pitchers are bulbous in the basal third and cylindrical above. They are relatively small, reaching only 15 cm in height by 4 cm in width. A pair of fringed wings up to 5 mm wide runs down the front of each pitcher. The pitcher mouth is round and rises to form a short neck at the rear. The peristome is cylindrical in cross section, up to 2 mm wide, and bears indistinct teeth. A dense band of short white trichomes is present directly below the peristome, although these may be missing from pitchers that have caught termites. The glandular region covers the bulbous portion of the pitcher's inner surface. The lid or operculum is suborbicular and lacks appendages. An unbranched spur (≤3 mm long) is inserted near the base of the lid.[5]
Upper pitchers are similar to their lower counterparts in most respects. They are cylindrical-infundibular throughout and have a pair of ribs in place of wings.[5]
Nepenthes albomarginata has a racemose inflorescence that is usually longer in male plants. The peduncle is up to 25 cm long, while the rachis reaches lengths of up to 40 cm. Partial peduncles are one- or two-flowered, up to 30 mm long, and lack a bract. Sepals are obovate to oblong in shape and up to 4 mm long.[5] A study of 120 pollen samples taken from a herbarium specimen (J.H.Adam 2417, collected in Borneo at an altitude of 0–30 m) found the mean pollen diameter to be 31.8 μm (SE = 0.4; CV = 6.2%).[6]
Most parts of the plant are covered in a dense indumentum of very short, stellate white hairs. However, the underside of the lamina bears a dense covering of long hairs.[5]
Ecology
Nepenthes albomarginata is a widespread species, occurring in Borneo, Peninsular Malaysia, and Sumatra. It has an altitudinal distribution of 0–1200 m above sea level.[7]
N. albomarginata growing in Sumatran heath forest
Its typical habitat consists of kerangas forest, but it has also been recorded from the summit vegetation of lowland peaks.[5] It is known from peat and limestone substrates.[5][8]
Carnivory
A lower pitcher with an intact band of trichomes (left) and one lacking them (right)Nepenthes albomarginata is notable for specializing in termites; most of the species in the genus Nepenthes are unselective about their prey. According to botanist Marlis A. Merbach and coworkers, this specialization to a single prey taxon is unique amongst carnivorous plants.[9][10][11]
Nepenthes albomarginata has a unique morphological feature: a rim of living white trichomes directly below the peristome. The rim's hairs tend to be missing from pitchers that have caught termites. Merbach said "For several days, nothing would happen, then — after a single night — pitchers would fill with termites and their rim hairs would disappear."
Merbach investigated this phenomenon by placing fresh intact pitchers, together with pitchers with their white rims removed, near to the head of foraging columns of the termite Hospitalitermes bicolor.[9] When the column found the pitcher, termites grazed on the rim.
While grazing, many termites (both workers and soldiers) fell into the pitchers. Once in the pitcher, they were unable to climb out. Merbach counted up to 22 individuals per minute falling into the pitchers and noted that the capture rate could easily exceed this for denser columns. After about an hour, the hairs were all gone and the pitcher was evidently no longer attractive to termites (and was filled with termites trying to escape).
It is not known how the trichomes lure termites to the plant. Merbach detected no long-range olfactory attraction during his experiments and noted that "all contacts seemed to happen by chance, with termites often missing pitchers less than 1 cm away from them."
Merbach also points out that N. albomarginata is the only plant species to offer its tissue as a bait.
Related species
In 2001, Clarke performed a cladistic analysis of the Nepenthes species of Sumatra and Peninsular Malaysia using 70 morphological characteristics of each taxon. The following is a portion of the resultant cladogram, showing "Clade 6", which is only weakly supported at 50%. The sister pair of N. angasanensis and N. mikei has 79% support.[3]
Lower pitchers of N. adnata (left) and a purple form of N. albomarginata (right)50% unnamed N. albomarginata
unnamed unnamed 79% Infraspecific taxa
- N. albomarginata f. sanguinea Toyoda ex Hinode-Kadan (1985) nom.nud.
- N. albomarginata var. rubra (Hort. ex Macfarl.) Macfarl. (1908)
- N. albomarginata var. tomentella (Miq.) G.Beck (1895)[12]
- N. albomarginata var. typica G.Beck (1895)[12] nom.illeg.
- N. albomarginata var. villosa Hook.f. (1873)[13]
Natural hybrids
N. albomarginata × N. gracilis- N. albomarginata × N. ampullaria[5]
- ? N. albomarginata × N. chaniana[14]
- N. albomarginata × N. clipeata[5]
- N. albomarginata × N. eustachya[3]
- N. albomarginata × N. gracilis
- N. albomarginata × N. hirsuta[5]
- N. albomarginata × N. macrovulgaris[14]
- N. albomarginata × N. northiana [=N. × cincta][5]
- N. albomarginata × N. rafflesiana[14][15]
- N. albomarginata × N. reinwardtiana [=N. × ferrugineomarginata][5]
- ? N. albomarginata × N. sanguinea[14][16]
- N. albomarginata × N. veitchii[5]
N. albomarginata × N. northiana
Main article: Nepenthes × cincta
An upper pitcher of N. × cinctaNepenthes × cincta is a rare plant and, due to the localised distribution of N. northiana, only grows at a few sites in Bau, Sarawak, usually on a substrate of limestone.
The traits of N. albomarginata are very dominant in this hybrid; the wide flared peristome of its larger parent species (N. northiana) is almost completely lost. Pitchers are narrowly infundibulate (funnel-shaped) throughout and range in colour from cream to dusky purple with red or black spots.[17]
N. albomarginata × N. reinwardtiana
Main article: Nepenthes × ferrugineomarginataIts natural range covers the islands Borneo and Sumatra. The type specimen was collected by Shigeo Kurata in Kenukat, West Kalimantan, in 1981. Kurata described the hybrid the following year.
References
- ^ Ashton, P.S. 1971. The plants and vegetation of Bako National Park. Malayan Nature Journal 24: 151–162.
- ^ a b c Phillipps, A. & A. Lamb 1996. Pitcher-Plants of Borneo. Natural History Publications (Borneo), Kota Kinabalu.
- ^ a b c d Clarke, C.M. 2001. Nepenthes of Sumatra and Peninsular Malaysia. Natural History Publications (Borneo), Kota Kinabalu.
- ^ Adam, J.H., C.C. Wilcock & M.D. Swaine 1989. Ecology and taxonomy of Bornean Nepenthes. University of Aberdeen Tropical Biology Newsletter 56: 2–4.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Clarke, C.M. 1997. Nepenthes of Borneo. Natural History Publications (Borneo), Kota Kinabalu.
- ^ Adam, J.H. & C.C. Wilcock 1999. Palynological study of Bornean Nepenthes (Nepenthaceae).PDF Pertanika Journal of Tropical Agricultural Science 22(1): 1–7.
- ^ Adam, J.H., C.C. Wilcock & M.D. Swaine 1992. The ecology and distribution of Bornean Nepenthes.PDF Journal of Tropical Forest Science 5(1): 13–25.
- ^ Anderson, J.A.R. 1965. Limestone habitat in Sarawak. Proceedings of the Symposium on Ecological Research in Humid Tropics Vegetation, July 1963, Kuching, Sarawak. pp. 49–57.
- ^ a b Merbach, M.A., D.J. Merbach, U. Maschwitz, W.E. Booth, B. Fiala & G. Zizka 2002. Carnivorous plants: Mass march of termites into the deadly trap. Nature 415: 36–37. doi:10.1038/415036a
- ^ Moran, J.A., M.A. Merbach, N.J. Livingston, C.M. Clarke & W.E. Booth 2001. Termite prey specialization in the pitcher plant Nepenthes albomarginata - evidence from stable isotope analysis.PDF (185 KB) Annals of Botany 88: 307–311.
- ^ Merbach, M.A., D.J. Merbach, W.E. Booth, U. Maschwitz, G. Zizka & B. Fiala 2000. A unique niche in plant carnivory: Nepenthes albomarginata feeds on epigaeically mass foraging termites. Tagungsband gtö 2000 13. Jahrestagung der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Tropenökologie 1–3. March 2000 in Würzburg Lehrstuhl für Tierökologie und Tropenbiologie Universität Würzburg. p. 105.
- ^ a b (German) Beck, G. 1895. Die Gattung Nepenthes. Wiener Illustrirte Garten-Zeitung 20(3–6): 96–107, 141–150, 182–192, 217–229.
- ^ Hooker, J.D. 1873. Nepenthaceae. In: A. de Candolle Prodromus Systematis Naturalis Regni Vegetabilis 17: 90–105.
- ^ a b c d McPherson, S.R. 2009. Pitcher Plants of the Old World. 2 volumes. Redfern Natural History Productions, Poole.
- ^ Lowrie, A. 1983. Sabah Nepenthes Expeditions 1982 & 1983.PDF (1.25 MB) Carnivorous Plant Newsletter 12(4): 88–95.
- ^ Shivas, R.G. 1985. Variation in Nepenthes albo-marginata.PDF (670 KB) Carnivorous Plant Newsletter 14(1): 13–14.
- ^ Clarke, C.M. & C.C. Lee 2004. Pitcher Plants of Sarawak. Natural History Publications (Borneo), Kota Kinabalu.
Further reading
- Adam, J.H. 1997. Prey spectra of Bornean Nepenthes species (Nepenthaceae) in relation to their habitat.PDF Pertanika Journal of Tropical Agricultural Science 20(2–3): 121–134.
- Bonhomme, V., H. Pelloux-Prayer, E. Jousselin, Y. Forterre, J.-J. Labat & L. Gaume 2011. Slippery or sticky? Functional diversity in the trapping strategy of Nepenthes carnivorous plants. New Phytologist 191(2): 545–554. doi:10.1111/j.1469-8137.2011.03696.x
- Clarke, C.M., R. Cantley, J. Nerz, H. Rischer & A. Witsuba (2000). Nepenthes albomarginata. 2006. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. www.iucnredlist.org. Retrieved on 11 May 2006.
- Fashing, N.J. 2010. Two novel adaptations for dispersal in the mite family Histiostomatidae (Astigmata).PDF In: M.W. Sabelis & J. Bruin (eds.) Trends in Acarology: Proceedings of the 12th International Congress. Springer Science, Dordrecht. pp. 81–84. doi:10.1007/978-90-481-9837-5
- Hernawati & P. Akhriadi 2006. A Field Guide to the Nepenthes of Sumatra. PILI-NGO Movement, Bogor.
- (Czech) Macák, M. 1998. Portréty rostlin - Nepenthes albomarginata. Trifid 1998(3–4): 57–59. (page 2, page 3)
- (Indonesian) Mansur, M. 2001. Koleksi Nepenthes di Herbarium Bogoriense: prospeknya sebagai tanaman hias.PDF In: Prosiding Seminar Hari Cinta Puspa dan Satwa Nasional. Lembaga Ilmu Pengetahuan Indonesia, Bogor. pp. 244–253.
- Moran, J.A., W.E. Booth & J.K. Charles 1999. Aspects of pitcher morphology and spectral characteristics of six Bornean Nepenthes pitcher plant species: Implications for prey capture.PDF (187 KB) Annals of Botany 83: 521–528.
- Riedel, M., A. Eichner, H. Meimberg & R. Jetter 2007. Chemical composition of epicuticular wax crystals on the slippery zone in pitchers of five Nepenthes species and hybrids. Planta 225(6): 1517–1534. doi:10.1007/s00425-006-0437-3
- Shivas, R.G. 1984. Pitcher Plants of Peninsular Malaysia & Singapore. Maruzen Asia, Kuala Lumpur.
- Smythies, B.E. 1965. The distribution and ecology of pitcher-plants (Nepenthes) in Sarawak. UNESCO Humid Tropics Symposium, June–July 1963, Kuching, Sarawak.
- (Indonesian) Sukamto, L.A. 2005. Kultur Nepenthes albomarginata secara in vitro.PDF In: Laporan Teknik Pusat Penelitian Biologi-LIPI. Lembaga Ilmu Pengetahuan Indonesia, Bogor. pp. 433–438.
- Thorogood, C. 2010. The Malaysian Nepenthes: Evolutionary and Taxonomic Perspectives. Nova Science Publishers, New York.
- Wan, A.S., R.T. Aexel, R.B. Ramsey & H.J. Nicholas 1972. Nepenthaceae: sterols and triterpenes of the pitcher plant. Phytochemistry 11(1): 456–461. doi:10.1016/S0031-9422(00)90055-4
External links
- Photographs of N. albomarginata at the Carnivorous Plant Photofinder
Incompletely diagnosed taxa: N. sp. Misool • N. sp. Papua • N. sp. Sulawesi
Possible extinct species: N. echinatus • N. echinosporus • N. majorCategories:- IUCN Red List conservation dependent species
- Carnivorous plants of Asia
- Nepenthes
- Conservation dependent plants
- Nepenthes albocincta
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