Terrestrial or epiphytic climber to 10 m tall. Stems terete or slightly ridged, 6-10 mm diam., internodes of climbing stems 3-7 cm long, axillary buds absent. Leaves coriaceous, petiolate; leaves of rosettes obovate, c. 7 by 4 cm, apex truncate to retuse, base cuneate; petiole to 2-3 cm long; leaves of short and climbing stems with blade narrowly oblong-lanceolate, 15-30 by 6-9 cm, apex rounded, base obtuse; petiole stout, canaliculate, 4-14 cm long, not auriculate, but slightly sheathed at the base, clasping the stem for 1/2-4/5 its circumference and sometimes with narrow, straight, decurrent ridges up to 10 mm long. Longitudinal nerves 2-4 on each side of the midrib in the outer 1/3, conspicuous. Pennate nerves inconspicuous. Lower pitchers rarely collected, subcylindrical, up to 13 by 4 cm, with two fringed wings in the upper 3/4, each 4-5 mm wide, fringed elements 3-5 mm long, 1-2 mm apart; mouth broadly ovate, oblique, concave, rising to the vertical near the lid to form a short column; peristome ± cylindrical, 2-3 mm wide, with well-defined ribs 1-1.5 mm apart, outer edge entire, inner edge long, flat, to 10 mm wide, with teeth 1-2 mm long; lid orbicular to ovate, c. 3.5 by 3.5 cm, lacking appendages, but with numerous patent, hair-like growths up to 10 mm long, nectar glands pit-like, c. 0.1 mm diam., situated at truncated ends of hair-like growths and on lid surface, often surrounded by dome-like, thick border c. 0.4 mm diam. Upper pitchers subwoody, 15-20(-28) cm high, the lower part globose or obliquely ovoid, 5-10 cm wide, held horizontally, with one side lowest, upper part curved upwards, then highly constricted before abruptly flaring out in the upper, infundibuliform part to about 6-12 cm wide at the mouth, wings reduced to ribs; mouth broadly ovate, oblique, straight; peristome reduced, detectable only as a line of corrugations 2 mm apart inside the rim; lid ovate-elliptic, 9-14 by 5.5-9 cm, apex rounded, base cordate, strongly keeled and vaulted and held erect, at c. 120° to the mouth, lower surface without appendages, but with numerous hair-like structures on the lower surface (see lower pitchers); spur unbranched, 14 mm long. Male inflorescence 15-37 cm long; peduncle 7-17 cm long, 0.3 cm diam. at base; partial peduncles 2-flowered, 0.5-4 mm long; bracts absent; pedicels 12-15 mm long; tepals elliptic, 4 by 3 mm; androphore 2-4 mm long; anther head 0.7-1.5 by 1.7-2 mm. Fruit valves 17-27 by 3-4 mm. Seed fusiform, 12-14 mm long, central part smooth. Indumentum: pubescent with short brown stellate hairs, rarely persisting on mature parts apart from lower midrib and edge of leaf blade. Colour of pitcher dark green outside, dark red inside; inflorescence dark red.
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