Stapelia clavicorona I.Verd.

Succulent shrublet forming rather few-stemmed clumps, 150-500 mm diam. Stems 50-150(-200) mm long, 15-50 mm thick, decumbent to erect, stout, shortly pubescent, green mottled with purple; tubercles 3-10 mm long, deltoid, joined towards base into 4 wing-like angles along stem between which stem deeply concave; leaf-rudiments 1.5-2.0 mm long. Inflorescence shortly pubescent, 1-3 per stem mainly towards bases of stems, each with 1-3 flowers developing in gradual succession on short stout peduncle <5 mm long with a few lanceolate bracts 1-2 mm long; pedicel 4-6 mm long, 2.5-3.5 mm thick, spreading and holding flower facing ± horizontally; sepals 3-5 mm long, 2.0-2.5 mm broad at base, ovate-deltoid, acute. Corolla 45-60 mm diam., rotate; outside shortly pubescent (becoming longer towards tips of lobes), green to purplish with 5-7 or more darker veins running down each lobe, often speckled in ring above sepals; inside irregularly transversely rugulose (on united part forming concentric circles), yellow-to green-to purple-brown (rugulosities slightly darker), glabrous except in tube; tube 2 mm deep, pentagonal, quite closely surrounding stipe of gynostegium, corolla somewhat thickened around mouth, lower half with many cylindrical downward-pointing purplish hairs; lobes 15-18 mm long, 14-19 mm broad at base, broadly ovate, shortly acuminate, ± flat above becoming convex towards tips where margins reflexed, margins with white to purple vibratile slightly clavate cilia up to 3 mm long except towards apices. Corona ±5 mm tall, ±7 mm broad, raised on stout white obtusely pentagonal stipe ±1 mm tall, with somewhat glistening pitted surface, purple-black becoming reddish towards base, glabrous; outer lobes 2.0-2.5 mm long, ascending and spreading at mouth of tube, acute, deeply channelled on upper surface; inner lobes ±3 mm long, adpressed to backs of anthers then erect and connivent, dorsiventrally flattened below, cylindrical-clavate above, with slightly laterally compressed ascending dorsal horn a little larger than lobe itself and also clavate.