Araceae
Monstera

Monstera vasquezii Croat

First published in Rodriguésia 56: 96 (2005)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is N. Peru. It is a climber and grows primarily in the wet tropical biome.

Descriptions

Extinction risk predictions for the world's flowering plants to support their conservation (2024). Bachman, S.P., Brown, M.J.M., Leão, T.C.C., Lughadha, E.N., Walker, B.E. https://nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/nph.19592

Conservation
Predicted extinction risk: threatened. Confidence: confident
[AERP]

CATE Araceae, 17 Dec 2011. araceae.e-monocot.org

Diagnostic
The species is a member of section Monstera, most closely related to M. dubia because of similar blade shape and drying color. Monstera dubia differs in having a more or less subcordate blade base and conspicuously reticulate tertiary veins. In contrast, M. vasquezii has merely rounded blades at the base, and much less conspicuous reticulate venation. In addition, M. dubia typically has 1–2 rows of perforations on both sides of the midrib, whereas M. vasquezii is not obviously perforate.

Croat, Swart & Yates 2005: 97.
Distribution
Monstera vasquezii is known only from the Río Cenepa region, Peru.

Croat, Swart & Yates 2005: 97.
General Description
Hemiepiphytic climber; internodes to 2.5 cm long, drying 1.8 cm diam., epidermis semiglossy, drying medium gray-brown, frequently peeling free, the underlying stem drying blackened, matte, weakly & closely ribbed. Petioles 29 cm long, thicker than broad, 8–9 mm thick, to 1 cm wide at the base, 5–6 mm wide toward the apex, drying matte, gray-brown, narrowly sulcate adaxially with the margins raised, sheathed throughout most of its length, the margin promptly deciduous with a few brown fibers persisting; blades entire, narrowly ovate, 56 × 26 cm, 2.1 cm longer than wide, acuminate at apex, rounded at base, yellowish gray-green above and below; midrib broadly raised and weakly paler above, narrowly rounded and paler below, drying yellow-brown, matte; primary lateral veins 14 per side, arising at an acute angle, then spreading at 70–85° angle, drying flattened and darker than surface, finely and minutely ridged; minor veins reticulate throughout the region between the midrib and the margin but moderately obscure on lower surface. Inflorescence solitary; peduncle 13 cm long, drying blackened, 6 mm diam.; spadix 17 cm long, drying 3.1 cm wide; pistil 1.2 × 2.2–2.5 mm; stigma 3.2–3.6 × 3.8–3.0 mm, dark brown, matte, irregularly oblong to rounded or hexagonal; stigma oblong, 3–3.4 mm long, 1 mm wide, deeply sunken medially with a brown raised rim.

Croat, Swart & Yates 2005: 97.
Habitat
In Premontane wet forest (P-wf) life zone.

Croat, Swart & Yates 2005: 97.
[CATE]

Sources

  • Angiosperm Extinction Risk Predictions v1

    • Angiosperm Threat Predictions
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

  • CATE Araceae

    • Haigh, A., Clark, B., Reynolds, L., Mayo, S.J., Croat, T.B., Lay, L., Boyce, P.C., Mora, M., Bogner, J., Sellaro, M., Wong, S.Y., Kostelac, C., Grayum, M.H., Keating, R.C., Ruckert, G., Naylor, M.F. and Hay, A., CATE Araceae, 17 Dec 2011.
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Kew Backbone Distributions

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2026. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2026. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0