Anthurium pedatoradiatum Schott,

Bonplandia 7: 337. 1859.

Anthurium pedatoradiatum ssp. pedatoradiatum. TYPE: Mexico, cultivated in Vienna, illustrated by Schott Aroid Drawing #781, 782, NYBG Neg. #3920, 3921; Photo MO.

Anthurium pedatifidum Rcgel & Linden, Gartenflora 15: 66. 1866. TYPE: Plate 501 accompanying the description (see discussion).
Anthurium mirandae Matuda, Anales Inst. Biol. Univ. Nac. Mexico 22: 375. 1951. TYPE: Mexico. Chia-pas: El Ocote, NW of Ocozocoautla, clev. 575 m, Miranda 6312 (MEXU).

Terrestrial, usually more than 1 m tall; stem 1.7-3 cm diam.; leaf scars 2 cm wide; roots moderately thick, directed downward; cataphylls subcoriaceous, 3.5-4 cm long, rounded at apex, drying medium brown (B & K Yellow 5/5), persisting intact at apex, splitting at base.

LEAVES erect; petioles 35-87 cm long, 5-6 mm diam., terete; geniculum 1-1.2 cm long; blades broadly ovate, 22-33 cm long, 38-60 cm wide, broadest at middle or just below, to 13-pedatisect, the lobes confluent 4-7 cm from base, the base broadly lobed, the apices of the lobes narrowly acuminate, the margin of the lobes entire, the median lobe 18-33 cm long, the outermost lobes18-27 cm long, inequilateral and auriculate, falcate; sinus hippocrepiform, rounded at apex; upper surface semiglossy, the lower surface matte; midrib of the median lobe sharply raised above and below; basal veins 3-5 pairs, the third to fifth coalesced 1.5-1.8 cm, the fourth to fifth coalesced to 5.5 cm, raised above and below; primary lateral veins of the median lobe 4-8 per side, departing the midrib at ca. 40''angle, sunken in above, raised below, loop-connecting; collective vein of the median lobe arising from the first or second primary lateral vein.

INFLORESCENCE erect, shorter than leaves; peduncle 5-23 cm long, 3 mm diam.; spathe green (B & K Yellow-green 7/7.5), lanceolate, 7-9.2 cm long, 1.5 cm wide, inserted at 50° angle on peduncle; stipe 18 mm long in back; spadix greenish tinged with purple-violet to dark purple-violet (B & K Red-purple 2 10), 4-7.5 cm long, 5-7 mm diam. at base, 3-4 mm diam. at apex; flowers rhombic to sub-4-lobed, 4-4.8 mm long, 4.2-4.4 mm wide, the sides sigmoid; 6-7 flowers visible in the principal j spiral, 4-5 flowers visible in the alternate spiral; tepals matte, minutely papillate, the lateral tepals 12.4—2.5 mm wide, the inner margins broadly grounded; pistil raised but not emergent; stigmas obscure; stamens emerging in a slow progression from base, the alternate stamens following soon after emergence of both lateral stamens, exsertcd above the tepals and held in a light circle over pistil; filaments whitish, translucent 0.5 mm long, 0.1 mm wide, flattened; anthers white to pale yellow, 0.5-0.6 mm long, 0.5-0.6 mm wide; the-cae narrowly ovate, slightly divaricate; pollen pale yellow to cream, fading to white.

INFRUCTESCENCE unknown. Figs. 134 and 141.

Anthurium pedatoradiatum consists of two subspecies, both endemic to Mexico. The species occurs in southern Veracruz, Chiapas, and Tabasco ranging in elevation from near sea level to 800 m. Most collections have been made above 500 m in a region of "selva alta perennifolia" north of Ocozocoautla, a region with extensive outcrops of limestone. The species is in section Schizoplacium and is distinguished by the pedatisect leaf blades with entire lobes, erect inflorescences that are shorter than the leaves, and the green, lanceolate spathe.
In Mexico it is possible to confuse the species with some forms of A. podophyllum, which may have the leaf segments entire. The latter occur only in northern Oaxaca and can be distinguished by having much thicker leaf blades.
The subspecies pedatoradiatum is distinguished by its terrestrial habit and differs from subspecies helleborifolium by having leaf segments rather uniformly united at the base with no segments divided to the base of the leaflet. In subspecies helleborifolium, one or more of the segments is free or nearly free to the base.
The plate accompanying the type description of A. pedatifidum shows a plant with one leaf blade divided in the manner characteristic of subspecies pedatoradiatum and another seemingly divided to the base, but nothing is mentioned in the description about this range of variation and it can only be assumed that the second leaf represents an error by the artist. The taxon that is here considered a synonym was supposed to differ from A. pedatoradiatum by a supposedly different geniculum and fewer number of blade segments.

Map of Mesoamerican specimens with coordinates

South American Specimens

Ecuador :, 23 October 1996, Thomas B. Croat 79410 (MO).