l - CNCFlora

738
Annals of the
Missouri Botanical Garden
moderately foul; leaf scars conspicuous, transverse veins" sometimes visible. INFLORESCENCES 1 to
or oblique (when oblique, up to 2x as wide on one 2 sometimes 3, rarely 4 per axil; peduncle (2.2)3.5side
as the other), forming a T or forming a W on 12(22) cm long (average 7.6 cm long), l/lo as long
open side of sheath; internodes semiglossy to glossy, as spathe to fully as long as the spathe, averaging
weakly warty on magnification, 1-5.T cm long, 0.8- 0.43 as long, 6-13 mm diam., 2-4 mm diam. on
2(3) cm diam., dark olive-green to blackish green, drying, somewhat flattened in cross section; spathe
medium green or dark green, sometimes variegated (7.5)10-17(25.5) cm long, weakly constricted above
with streaks of paler green, drying dark brown to tube, medium green on both surfaces, sometimes
dark yellow-brown, glossy, smooth; petioles 10- tinged whitish on back throughout (the median rib
20(.30) cm lollg, (averaging 13.7 cm long), 3-4 mm green), weakly glossy to semiglossy outside, glossy
diam., sheathing 1/3 to 3/4 (rarely nearly throughout) on inside, narrowly acuminate at apex; tube to 2-
their length (avelaging 0.7 their length), medium 2.8 cm wide, 1.5-2.3 cm thick when furled, to 8
green, matte, sometimes finely streaked throughout cm wide when flattened; spathe blade to 2.5 cm
with darker green, usually weakly glossy and white diam. when furled, 3.0-8 cm wide at anthesis; spanear
base; sheath 2.5-21.5 cm long (averaging 9.3 dix (7)10-17(21) cm long (averaging 14.6 cm), 1-
cm long), pale green to white on lowermost clasping 5 cm shortel than spathe; pistillate portion 4.3portion
(contl asting sharply with much darker 7.5(10) cm long (averaging 6.4 cm long), 5-10 mm
stem), with margins involute, the tip with one side diam.; fertile staminate portion 3-8.5 cm long (averect,
free-ending and rounded to auriculate, with eraging .5..3 ( m long), 5-7 mm diam., broadest at
the other side rounded to acute (sometimes not free- middle, tapeling toward both ends, especially at
ending in Coe le Province, Panama); unsheathed
bluntly y)oi llted apex; mostly steri le intermediate
portion 5-1.S (m long, C-shaped to U-shaped in
segment (1)2-3.2 cm long, to 2.5 mm diam. (dried),
cross section, ( onvex adaxially, acute to bluntly anwith
a few u i(lely scattered stel ile staminate flowers
gled on margills; I)leldes ovate to narrowly ovate or
in uppel 3/4 clnd a few pistillate flowers in lower 1/4,
ovate-lanceolate or rarely oblanceolate, (5.5)14sometime.s
with only sterile stanlillate flowers scat-
22(35) x (1.7)4-14(21.5) cm, (averaging 20.1 x
tered thlotlt,llout, rarely almost l)ale; pistils (26)33-
8.5 cm), 1.4-5.9 tilileS longer than wide (averaging
46(54), lo(lerately closely spat e(l except in the
2.5 times longer than wide), 0.8-2.7 times longer
lower 1..S em and the upper ] (m (the distance
than petiole (avel aging 1.5), often inequilateral,
between theln generally equaling or twice their
somewhat thinly ( oriaceous to subcoriaceous, moderately
bicolorous, gradually acuminate and apicwidth),
uS to 4 in a row across tlle width of the
ulate at apex (the acumen 5 mm long), acute and
spadix, subt,lobose, 1.5 x 1.4-2.6 mm; stigma deweakly
decurrent to obtuse or more often rounded,
pressed-globoseX yellow, 1 mm wide, puberulent;
sometimes subcordate at base; upper surface matte
style cavitolln with a weak central dome; staminoand
subvelvety to weakly glossy, dark green, fre- dia clavate, white, drying orange, 2-3(4.5) mm
quently splot(hed light or medium green or with long, 1-2 nlm wide at apex, 2-3 times longer than
white areas especially near midrib (all variations pistil, usually weakly fused at base, sometimes well
frequently found in a single population), drying separate(l? weakly flattened, thickened toward apex;
dark brown to gray-green, concolorous, sometimes synandria 3 to 5 per spiral, 1.4-2.0 mm diam., the
faintly dark-stliate; lower surface matte to weakly margins slllooth to irregularly and smoothly inglossy
(epidermal cells raised and sometimes trans- dented, smooth and subrounded at apex. INFRUClucent),
drying yellow-green to yellow-brown, some- TESCENCE to 22 cm long; spathe orange outside;
times faintly dark-striate, slightly paler; rnidrib flat- berries bright red, globose, with 13 to 43 per spadix,
raised to obtusely flat-raised above, concolorous or 4-6 mm diam.
sometimes white above (sometimes mottled on
plants with mottled leaves, sometimes faintly dark- Distribution and habitat. Dieffenbachia oerstestriate
on both surfaces), slightly paler and convex dii ranges from Mexico (Veracruz, Oaxaca, Chiapas,
to broadly convex to bluntly acute below; prirnary and Tabasco) mostly along the Caribbean slope in
lateral veins (4)6 to 9(11) per side, departing midrib Central America in Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaraat
a 40°-45° angle, broadly arcuate-ascending, gua, and Costa Rica (where it occurs on both
sunken to quilted-sunken above, slightly darker slopes) and west-central Panama. The species also
than surface, weakly convex-pleated below; inter- occurs on the Pacific slope of E1 Salvador (Depart-
1
primary velns weaK or as consplcuous as prlmary ment of Ahuachapan). The species ranges from sea
lateral veins; minor veins indistinct above, moder- level to 1260 m in Tropical dry (T-df), Tropical rnoist
ately distinct to moderately obscure below; "cross- (T-mf), Tropical wet (T-wf), Prernontane wet (P-wf),