Triphyophyllum

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Genus of carnivorous plants

title: "Triphyophyllum" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["caryophyllales", "carnivorous-plants-of-africa", "flora-of-guinea", "flora-of-ivory-coast", "flora-of-liberia", "flora-of-sierra-leone", "monotypic-caryophyllales-genera", "plants-described-in-1927", "taxa-named-by-john-hutchinson-(botanist)", "taxa-named-by-john-mcewan-dalziel"] description: "Genus of carnivorous plants" topic_path: "general/caryophyllales" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triphyophyllum" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Genus of carnivorous plants ::

|image = Triphyophyllum peltatum 10 (Dioncophyllaceae) © W. Barthlott.jpg |image_caption = Climbing adult Triphyophyllum with hooked leaves |genus = Triphyophyllum |parent_authority = Airy Shaw |species = peltatum |authority = (Hutch. & Dalziel) Airy Shaw |range_map = Triphyophyllum distribution.svg |range_map_caption = Triphyophyllum is native to Guinea, Ivory Coast, Liberia, and Sierra Leone |synonyms =

  • Dioncophyllum peltatum |synonyms_ref =

Triphyophyllum peltatum is a facultatively carnivorous, up to 60 m tall vine in the monotypic genus Triphyophyllum in the family Dioncophyllaceae native to tropical western Africa, in Guinea, Ivory Coast, Liberia, and Sierra Leone where it grows in tropical rainforest.

Description

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/66/Triphyophyllum_peltatum_8_(Dioncophyllaceae)_©_W._Barthlott.jpg" caption="Flower, Fruit and ripe seed of the adult plant"] ::

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7e/Triphyophyllum_peltatum_13_(Dioncophyllaceae)_©_W._Barthlott.jpg" caption="Juvenile non climbing insectivorous stage of ''Triphyophyllum'' with entire leaves and a single glandular insectivorous leaf resembling those of ''[[Drosophyllum]]''"] ::

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/25/Triphyophyllum_peltatum_2_beschnitten_(Dioncophyllaceae)_©_W._Barthlott.jpg" caption="Unfurling tip of a juvenile insectivorous leaf with stalked glands in the SEM"] ::

Vegetative characteristics

It is a facultatively carnivorous, heterophyllous, up to 60 m tall vine with glabrous, terete stems. It has a three-stage lifecycle, each with a different shaped leaf, as indicated by its Greek name. In the first stage, T. peltatum forms a rosette of simple lanceolate Dracaena-like leaves about 18 cm in length with undulate margins. At times when there is insufficient phosphorus in the soil it develops long, slender, glandular, circinate leaves up to 35 cm in length and bearing two sorts of glands, and resembling those of the related Drosophyllum, which capture insects; there being one to three of these leaves in each rosette. In the plant's adult liana form it has short non-carnivorous leaves bearing a pair of "grappling hooks" at their tips on a long twining stem which can become 50 m in length and 10 cm thick. T. peltatum is the largest of all confirmed carnivorous plants in the world, but its carnivorous nature did not become known until 1979, over 50 years after the plant's scientific description.

Generative characteristics

The axillary, branched, cymose, few-flowered or many-flowered inflorescence bears up to 80 small, ephemeral, fragrant, white to pink, bisexual, actinomorphic, pedicellate flowers. The pedicel is up to 3 cm long. The flower has 5 triangular, 2 mm long sepals, and 5 obovate, 13 mm long petals. The androecium consists of 10 stamens. The style is very short. The up to 4 cm wide, 1-seeded, 4–5-valved capsule fruit bears discoid, papery, flat, winged, circular, pink to red, 5–8(–10) cm wide seeds with an up to 5.5 cm long funiculus extending beyond the fruit. Most of the seed's development occurs outside the fruit. The seeds are wind-dispersed.

Cytology

The chromosome count is 2n = 24, 36.

Taxonomy

Triphyophyllum peltatum was first described as Dioncophyllum peltatum by John Hutchinson and John McEwan Dalziel in 1927. It was moved to a new monotypic genus Triphyophyllum as Triphyophyllum peltatum by Herbert Kenneth Airy Shaw in 1952.

Etymology

The generic name Triphyophyllum is derived from triphyes meaning of threefold form, and phyllum meaning leaf. It refers to the three growth stages of the plant with three different types of leaves. and refers to the discoid seeds, which have a long stalk that extends the seed beyond the capsule fruit.

Distribution and habitat

Triphyophyllum is found in Guinea, Ivory Coast, Liberia, and Sierra Leone, where it occurs in primary and old secondary dry evergreen rainforests. The habitat has a 6–7 month dry season. The acid, nutrient-poor soil is shallow.

Conservation

It is a rare and endangered species.

Cultivation

Triphyophylum peltatum is difficult to cultivate. It is cultivated in several botanical gardens: Würzburg, Hannover, Abidjan, Bonn, Cambridge University and Würzburg, and is exceedingly rare in private collections.

Uses

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/54/Triphyophyllum_compounds.svg" caption="''Triphyophyllum'' compounds; top left: R = -H: Habropetalin A; R = -OH: Dioncophyllin A.; bottom left: Dioncophyllin; bottom right: Dioncophyllin C."] ::

Triphyophyllum peltatum is traditionally used in folk medicine in the treatment of elephantiasis, and malaria. It produces many pharmaceutically active secondary metabolites, some of which have been found to have strong antiplasmodial activity. Some metabolites were found to have antitumoral and anti-multiple myeloma activity. The stems are used as tying material.

References

References

  1. Walker, C. (2023). [https://www.nature.com/articles/s41477-023-01450-9 Triggered by phosphorous deficiency.] Nature Plants, 9(6), 853-853.
  2. Cross, A., Krueger, T., Restoration Ecology Lab, Ecological Health Network, & Missouri Botanical Garden. (2020, November 26). Save me, Seymour! The increasingly dire plight of Darwin’s “Most wonderful plants in the world.” Natural History of Ecological Restoration. Retrieved March 28, 2025, from https://mbgecologicalrestoration.wordpress.com/2020/11/26/save-me-seymour-the-increasingly-dire-plight-of-darwins-most-wonderful-plants-in-the-world/
  3. (2023). "Carnivory on demand: phosphorus deficiency induces glandular leaves in the African liana ''Triphyophyllum peltatum''". New Phytologist.
  4. Simons, Paul. (17 April 2024). "Plantwatch: why does a rainforest vine turn into a part-time carnivore?". The Guardian.
  5. "''Triphyophyllum peltatum'' - Redfern Natural History".
  6. "Image of ''Triphyophyllum'' leaves".
  7. George Cheer, A GUIDE TO CARNIVOROUS PLANTS OF THE WORLD (Pymble, New South Wales, Aust.: Angus and Robertson, 1992) p. 122.
  8. Slack, Adrian. (1980). "Carnivorous Plants". Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
  9. Green, S., Green, T. L., & Heslop-Harrison, Y. (1979). [https://academic.oup.com/botlinnean/article-abstract/78/2/99/2680576 Seasonal heterophylly and leaf gland features in ''Triphyophyllum'' (Dioncophyllaceae), a new carnivorous plant genus.] Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, 78(2), 99-116.
  10. ''Triphyophyllum'', das Hakenblatt. (n.d.). Gesellschaft Für Fleischfressende Pflanzen. Retrieved March 28, 2025, from https://www.carnivoren.org/karnivoren/gattungen/triphyophyllum/
  11. Porembski, S., Barthlott, W. (2003). [https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-662-07255-4_19 Dioncophyllaceae.] In: Kubitzki, K., Bayer, C. (eds) Flowering Plants · Dicotyledons. The Families and Genera of Vascular Plants, vol 5. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg.
  12. Schmid-Hollinger, R. (n.d.). ''Triphyophyllum peltatum'' (“Hakenblatt”). Retrieved March 30, 2025, from https://www.bio-schmidhol.ch/de/Fleischfressende_Pflanzen/triphyophyllum
  13. Slack, A. (2000). [https://www.google.de/books/edition/Carnivorous_Plants/ROS4xtUpMFwC?hl=de&gbpv=1&dq=Triphyophyllum&pg=PA231&printsec=frontcover Carnivorous Plants.] pp. 231–232. Vereinigtes Königreich: MIT Press.
  14. John Hutchinson and J. M. Dalziel, "Tropical African Plants II" KEW BULLETIN (1928) pp. 31-32. (Under the name Dioncophyllum peltatum).
  15. [https://www.google.de/books/edition/Fibres/AspmAgAAQBAJ?hl=de&gbpv=1&dq=Triphyophyllum&pg=PA438&printsec=frontcover Fibres.] pp. 438–440. (2012). Niederlande: Prota Foundation.
  16. ''Triphyophyllum peltatum'' (Hutch. & Dalziel) Airy Shaw. (n.d.). Plants of the World Online. Retrieved March 28, 2025, from https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:317595-1
  17. ''Triphyophyllum'' Airy Shaw. (n.d.). Plants of the World Online. Retrieved March 28, 2025, from https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:14246-1
  18. [https://www.google.de/books/edition/The_Alkaloids/XifqEAAAQBAJ?hl=de&gbpv=1&dq=Triphyophyllum&pg=PA14&printsec=frontcover The Alkaloids: Chemistry and Biology.] p. 14. (2024). Niederlande: Academic Press.
  19. Merriam-Webster. (n.d.). -phyllum. In Merriam-Webster.com dictionary. Retrieved March 29, 2025, from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/-phyllum
  20. The specific epithet ''peltatum'' means ''shield-like''South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI). (n.d.-c). ''Pelargonium peltatum'' (L) L’Hér. PlantZAfrica. Retrieved March 29, 2025, from https://pza.sanbi.org/pelargonium-peltatum
  21. Stach, G., & Timmann, L. (2006, February 11). Species: ''Triphyophyllum peltatum'' (Hutchinson & Dalziel) Airy Shaw, {1952}. Die Karnivoren-Datenbank. Retrieved March 30, 2025, from https://www.fleischfressendepflanzen.de/db/species.ffp?id=35
  22. (1999-03-01). "Cultivation of ''Triphyophyllum peltatum'' (Dioncophyllaceae), the part-time carnivorous plant". Carnivorous Plant Newsletter.
  23. Mangel weckt den Appetit auf Fleisch. (2023, May 16). Universität Würzburg. Retrieved March 30, 2025, from https://www.uni-wuerzburg.de/aktuelles/pressemitteilungen/single/news/mangel-weckt-den-appetit-auf-fleisch/

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caryophyllalescarnivorous-plants-of-africaflora-of-guineaflora-of-ivory-coastflora-of-liberiaflora-of-sierra-leonemonotypic-caryophyllales-generaplants-described-in-1927taxa-named-by-john-hutchinson-(botanist)taxa-named-by-john-mcewan-dalziel