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P.hapnium
| Botany: | A slender, scandant dioecious climber, branchlets delicately puberculous, leaves on the runners broadly cordate, equal sided, palmately ribbed, tip acute to accuminate, leaves on the fruiting branches elliptic or oblong lanceolate, densely puberculous along the veins on the ventral side, about 8 c m. long, 5 cm broad, 2-3 pairs of prominent lateral ribs, base unequal, one side cordate, other amplexicaul auricle, petioles puberculous. Female spike cylindric, erect, 3 cm. long, shining white, peduncle puberculous; mature spike green, 3-4 cm long, often curved. Bracts peltate, pedicelled, orbicular, glabrous above. Carpel single, ovary obovate, stigma astylous, 3-4 lobed short, papillate. Fruit small 1-2 cm in dia., obovate, pungent, turns from green to black on ripening. An endangered species, very rare. |
| Keyfeature: | Leaves slightly pubescent, especially along the veins and ribs on the ventral side | | Distribution: | Distributed in the southern parts of Western ghats & Tirunelvely below 500 m MSL. |
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