Comparison of Morphological Characters from Bornean Lowland Nepenthes Inflorescences: Case Study from Post-Mining Area of Sintang Regency West Kalimantan

Abstract

The existence of inflorescence is an important aspect of Nepenthes conservation. However, it’s usually abandoned because they are rarely found in nature. This research aimed to compare the morphological characters of the Bornean lowland Nepenthes inflorescences based on species and sexes. It was conducted in the post-mining area of Sintang Regency, West Kalimantan Province, Indonesia, from October 2022 to February 2023. Inflorescence samples were collected from males and females of N. ampullaria, N. bicalcarata, N. gracillis, N. mirabilis, N. rafflesiana var. typica. Inflorescence morphometry characters consist of inflorescence length, peduncle length, rachilla length, flower length, tepal length, tepal width, and number of pistillate/staminate per inflorescence. The results showed that morphological characters of Bornean lowland Nepenthes inflorescence differ between species and sexes. N. ampullaria is characterised by having the highest number of flowers of any Nepenthes species. In contrast, N. bicalcarata is characterised by inflorescence length and peduncle length. Males and females have different morphological characteristics. Males have significantly longer and wider tepals and more flowers per inflorescence than females of Bornean lowland Nepenthes.