A new species of carnivorous pitcher plant, which grows mainly in the northern part of Borneo was discovered by Martin Dančák from the Department of Ecology and Environmental Sciences of the UP Faculty of Science. The tropical pitcher plant, dubbed Nepenthes fractiflexa, can be seen only in a few places in Borneo, so it is a relatively rare species. The description of the new species has been recently announced by the journal Phytotaxa.
Martin Dančák discovered the new pitcher plant accidentally when in 2008 he set out for mountain areas in the interior of Borneo. “But at that time, I did not recognise that it was a new and yet undescribed species. That was determined later by foreign colleagues who made an expedition to mysterious Mount Kemul in the Indonesian part of Borneo,” said Dančák.
Mount Kemul is located in a very remote area of Borneo, isolated from its surroundings and difficult to access. “My colleagues, however, managed to climb the mountain and discover the same pitcher plant as I did. It grew there together with a closely related species, with which it was previously mistaken. My colleagues noticed they are very different plants, and that it is a new and undescribed species of the tropical pitcher plant,” Dančák explained.
The new species, Nepenthes fractiflexa, is characterised by its remarkably winged stalk, not common in most pitcher plants. Also, the plant’s traps have an interesting shape and colour. “Pitcher plants have conspicuous cups with lids, often very colourful. But this species has less colourful cups. I even saw one population in Borneo this year that had pure green pitcher cups, which is very interesting,” added the ecologist.
The newly described pitcher plant grows among mountain vegetation. Most sites are located at altitudes of around 1500 metres above sea level and more. “They usually grow in more open, rather shrubby vegetation. So it is not a species that would prefer forests or shady habitats,” added Dančák.
After a longer hiatus, Nepenthes fractiflexa is another newly described species of pitcher plant from Borneo. Botanists now register some 170 species of pitcher plants, with almost 40 species growing in Borneo. “Surely this is not the last species of the pitcher plant to be discovered in Borneo. We already know about another new species, which is yet undescribed. We are keeping that one for next time,” said Dančák.