Fig. 26. Nepenthes Vieillardii ; a. portion of a climbing stem with male
inflorescence, 1/2 x (PULLE 843 bis) ; b & c. dwarf plants from mountain
top, 1/2 x (LAM 1654).50. Nepenthes Vieillardii HOOK. F., in D. C., Prodr., XVII, p. 104 (1873) ; BECC., Mal., III, p. 5 (1886) ; ZAHLBR., Ann. Hofmus. Wien., Ill, p. 285 (1888) ; BECK, Wien. Ill. Gartenz., 1895, p. 190 (1895) ; DUB., Bull. Mus. Hist. Nat., XII, p. 64, ic. 3 & 3,1 (1906) ; MACF., in ENGL., Pflanzenr., IV, 111, p. 48 (1908) ; GUILL., Ann. Mus. Col. Mars., ser. 2, IX, p. 211 (1911) ; GUILL & SCHINZ, Nov. Cal., bot., I, p. 146 (1920) ; N. Montrouzierii DUB., Bull. Mus. Hist. Nat., XII, p. 66, ic. 3,2 (1906) ; ? N. Bongso GUILL., Ann. Mus. Col. Mars., ser. 2, IX, p. 211 (1911).
.
Fig. 26. Nepenthes Vieillardii ; a. portion of a climbing stem with male
inflorescence, 1/2 x (PULLE 843 bis) ; b & c. dwarf plants from mountain
top, 1/2 x (LAM 1654).
Icones: Bull. Mus. Hist. Nat., XII, p. 65 & 66 (1906), fragmenta ; Trop. Natur, XI, p. 43, ic. 7 (1922) ; nostra 26.
Folia mediocria sessilia, lamina lanceolata, nervis longitudinalibus utrinque 4-5, basi 2/3 caulis amplectente in alas 2 breves v. longas decurrente ; ascidia rosularum ignota ; ascidia inferiora magnitudine mediocria campanulato-tubulosa, parte inferiore paulum ventricosa, alis 2 fimbriatis ; peristomio operculum versus acuto, applanato, ad 2 mm lato, costis 1/3-1/4 mm distantibus, dentibus 1-2 x longioribus quam latis ; operculo suborbiculari, facie inferiore plano ; ascidia superiora magnitudine mediocria, tubulosa, e parte inferiore infundibuliformi tubulosa v. parte inferiore leviter ventricosa, os versus paulum infundibuliformia v. omnino infundibuliformia, costis 2 elevatis nonnunquam rudimentis alarum fimbriatarum ; peristomio operculum versus acuto, applanato, 1-2 1/2 mm lato, costis dentibusque 1/4-2/3 mm distantibus, dentibus vix tam longis quam latis ; operculo orbiculari v. rotundato-elliptico, facie inferiore plano ; inflorescentia racemus pedicellis inferioribus 3-8 mm longis, omnibus 1-floris ; indumentum tomentosum v. villoso-tomentosum v. subnullum.
Stems climbing or shorter, the part with adult leaves 1 to 6 mm thick, cylindrical or somewhat angular, the internodes 6 cm to very short, with 2 wings in the upper part. Rosettes unknown. Leaves of the stems coriaceous, rarely chartaceous, lanceolate, rarely the lower ones more oblong or spathulate, mostly 5 to 20 cm long, 1 to 4 cm broad, usually acute, rarely obtuse or rounded, the sessile base broad and decurrent into 2 opposite wings over 1/5 to 4/5 of the internode ; pennate nerves distinct or indistinct, running straightly or obliquely towards the margin, the longitudinal ones 4 or 5 on each side, rarely 3 or indistinct, originating from the pennate nerves in the basal part of the leaf, running parallel in the outer 1/3 part of the lamina ; tendrils 1 to l l/2 times as long as the leaf, with or without curl. Lower pitchers, when not like the upper ones, ovate to campanulate, or ovate in the lower part and cylindrical in the upper part, 4 to 11 cm high, with 2 prominent ribs or with 2 fringed wings over the whole length, the wings up to 8 mm broad, the fringe segments up to 4 mm long, 1/2 to 1 mm apart ; mouth oblique, hardly acute towards the lid ; peristome, lid and spur like those of the upper pitchers, but the inner margin of the peristome with teeth once to twice as long as broad. Upper pitchers very different in shape, gradually originating from the hanging end of the tendril, rather shortly incurved, with a curve 1 to 10, rarely up to 20 mm wide, mostly tubulose from the infundibuliform lower part, often somewhat ventricose, somewhat narrowed in the middle, somewhat infundibuliform towards the mouth, in other cases wholly campanulate-infundibuliform or almost infundibuliform, 4 to 14 cm high, 1 to 3 cm wide ; mouth oblique or very oblique, acute or acuminate towards the lid ; peristome cylindrical or flattened 1 to 2 1/2 cm broad, the ribs 1/4 to 2/3 mm apart, the inner margin nearly or wholly entire ; inner surface of the pitcher usually in the lower 1/3 part, rarely for the half, in infundibuliform pitchers for 2/3 part glandular, the glands not or only partly overarched, about 500 to 600 on l cm2 ; lid orbicular or orbicular-elliptical, flat, the lower surface with few or many glands deepened or not ; spur inserted close to the lid or up to 2 mm from it, flattened, 1 to 5 mm long, not branched. Male inflorescence a raceme, the peduncle usually 2 to 6 cm long, 1 to 3 mm thick, the axis 5 to 25 cm long, 1 to 3 mm thick in the lower part, slightly attenuate, angular and grooved, densely flowered ; all pedicels 1-flowered, without bract, the lower ones 5 to 10 mm long, the upper ones only little shorter, relatively thick. Tepals orbicular-elliptic, 3 to 5 mm long. Staminal column shorter than the perigone, 2 1/2 to 4 mm long, the anthers included, which are situated in 1 or 1 1/2 whorl. Female inflorescence in the main like the male one, but shorter, the pedicels thicker on the average. Tepals oblong to lanceolate. Ovary sessile. Fruit 2 to 6 times as long as broad, 10 to 18 mm long, the valves 3 to 6 mm broad. Seeds unknown. Indumentum very differently developed, sometimes lanate-tomentose, occurring on the inflorescence on all young parts and on the leaves beneath, sometimes sparse, only present on the ovary and the inflorescences, very short and thin-tomentose. Colour of herbarium specimens dark yellowish-brown to reddish-brown in different hues. (Description after all the specimens seen by the author.)
NEW GUINEA. Northwestern part: Foot of the Doormantop, 3250 m, 17 X 1920, LAM 1637, H. B. (m, f) ; Doormantop, 3520 m, 18 X 1920, LAM 1654, H. B. (m, f) ; Nassau-Gebergte, 2600 m, X 1926, DOCTERS VAN LEEUWEN 10834 H. B. (m) ; Southwestern part: Hellwig-Gebergte, 1900 m, 27 XII 1912, PULLE 843 bis, H. B. (m) ; Erica-top, 1520 m, 23 XII 1912, PULLE 802, H. B. (m), also on alcohol ; PULLE 803, H. B. (0) ; 1460 m, XI 1909, VON RÖMER 1037, H. B. (f) ; idem 1038 & 1052, H. B. (0).
NEW CALEDONIA. 1874-1876, GERMAIN, H. B. (m) ; Prony, 19 IX 1914, FRANC 1909, H. B. (m) ; H. S. (0) ; Mt. Koghi, LE RAT, H. B. (m) ; 800-900 m, XII 1908, FRANC 17, H. L. B. (0) ; 290 m, 15 XII 1908, FRANC 17, sér. A, H. B. (m) ; Isle of Pines (= Kounié) (D.C., Prodr., XVII, p. 104 ; Wien. Ill. Gartenz., 1895, p. 190 ; Bull. Mus. Hist. Nat., XII, p. 65).
It seemed useless to cite the habitats on New Caledonia mentioned in the above cited literature.
N. Vieillardii has only been recorded from New Caledonia and the lsle of Pines up to the present, but the materials collected by the latter expeditions have shown, that at least in the western part of New Guinea it is not rare, in the latter country it varies more than in New Caledonia but it seemed impossible to me to distinguish separate species. Most alike the plants of New Caledonia are the number PULLE 834 and those of DOCTERS VAN LEEUWEN ; they only differ from the New Caledonia plants by the slightly developed indumentum, and the lid being more elliptical and bearing many glands on its lower surface. The plants of the Doormantop (LAM 1637 & 1654) have strongly abbreviate stems and are obviously an alpine form only ; they have nearly round lids like the plants of New Caledonia. The plants from the Ericatop are small and delicate in all parts ; they agree with the numbers first mentioned, by the elliptical and very glandular lids ; when the other New Guinea forms were not known, I would not have hesitated to distinguish those from the Ericatop specifically from those from New Caledonia.
DUBARD (l.c.) distinguished a var. Deplanchei and a new species N. Montrouzierii, but, according to his own dates, both are only extreme forms of N. Vieillardii and the differences with normal plants are less than those between the New Guinea plants.
The habitat of this species in New Guinea are as well the virgin forest and the scrub as the treeless mountain tops. On the Doormantop, where LAM collected his plants, one would not expect Nepenthes, the winds being there very strong and the temperature often very low, according to LAM often below the freezing point before sunrise. This hardiness gives N. Vieillardii a fair chance of dispersion. About the habitat in New Caledonia DUBARD says: "elle est signalée simultanément dans les plaines au bord des étangs, sur les collines, et meme à des attitudes assez élevées, jusqu'a 800 mètres, dans les terrains ferrugineux et arides". These dates agree very well with those obtained from New Guinea.