Heliconia wagneriana Petersen

  • Family

    Heliconiaceae (Magnoliophyta)

  • Scientific Name

    Heliconia wagneriana Petersen

  • Primary Citation

    Fl. Bras. (Martius) 3(3): 13-14. 1890

  • Common Names

    platanilla

  • Description

    Author : John Kress, Xavier Cornejo & Reinaldo Aguilar.

    Description: Musoid plant 2-3 m tall; pseudostem red and green, sometimes yellow, 75-140 cm tall. Leafy shoots in groups of 3 to 5; petioles to 85 cm long, glabrous; blades to 160 x 31 cm, glabrous on both sides. Peduncles red, 1-2 cm long, glabrous. Inflorescences erect, distichous, to 40 cm in height, bearing 5-9 spathes per inflorescence, the spathe angle 40-50º; axis straight, red-orange to pink, glabrous; spathes red with a thin yellow and green border along the margin, 11-14 x 7-9 cm, glabrous; floral bracts translucent, pale yellow to orange, 5-5.5 x 1.8-2.5 cm, persistent; pedicels white, 7-8 mm long, glabrous. Flowers 10-20 per spathe; ovary white, 5-7 x 5 mm, glabrous; perianth white with dark green apex, 56-59 mm long, essentially glabrous; free sepal reflexed, the fused sepals sparsely hirsute, apices not reflexed; staminode white, 13-15 x 1-2 mm; stamens with anthers connivent inside apex of corolla tube. Fruits blue, glabrous.

    Common names: Platanilla, platanillo (Spanish).

    Distribution: Mexico to Colombia from sea level to ca. 800 m.

    Ecology: In wet forests. In second growth, forests edge, and along streams. The erect inflorescences with open concave spathes suited for holding water, attracts a large number and diversity of insects and provides protection and sustenance for both matures and immatures (Mullins, 2007).

    Phenology: This species has been observed with flowers during the rainy season, from Apr to Nov (Kress, 1986).

    Pollination: The flowers are pollinated by hermit hummingbirds (Zuchowski, 2005).

    Dispersal: The fruits are eaten by birds.

    Taxonomic notes: Heliconia wagneriana belongs to Heliconia setc. Heliconia (Andersson, 1992).

    Conservation: Not recorded.

    Uses: Cultivated as an ornamental.

    Etymology: The epithet honors M. Wagner, who collected the type in Panama.

  • Sorry, no descriptions available for this record.