Stapeliopsis neronis Pillans

Small non-rhizomatous succulent forming clump 100-300 mm diam. Stems 40-150(-300) mm long, 20-35 mm thick, decumbent, blue-green mottled with purple (grey on exposed parts), minutely pubescent; tubercles 1-4 mm long, broadly deltoid, laterally flattened and joined into 4 narrowly obtuse angles along stem, tapering abruptly to minute conical tooth. Inflorescence minutely pubescent, arising near base of stem on peduncle gradually elongating to 10 mm or more, with lanceolate bracts <2 mm long; pedicel 5-10 mm long, ±2 mm thick, spreading then erect holding flower facing upwards; sepals 2-4 mm long, ovate-lanceolate, acuminate, with recurved apices. Corolla 17-28 mm long, 11-16 mm diam., ellipsoidal to nearly spherical (narrowing ± equally to both ends); outside finely pubescent with acute papillae, deep purple usually with many darker longitudinal veins; inside velvety white on lobes and mouth of tube, deep purple below, densely covered with conical obtuse papillae on inside of tube only, longest (<0.5 mm) towards mouth and disappearing towards base, each with apical bristle (very short in upper half of tube, up to 1.25 mm long towards base); tube 12-24 mm long, 13-15 mm broad at middle narrowing to 1.0-1.5 mm inside very much thickened mouth, ellipsoidal; lobes 4-5 mm long, ±3 mm broad at base, erect to slightly spreading, narrowly deltate, acute, very much thickened at base, with margins somewhat folded back so that inner surface strongly convex. Corona 7-11 mm tall, ±5 mm broad, raised on circular stipe ±2 mm long and 5-6 mm broad (only slightly broader than outer corona tube near base), dark purple; outer lobes 7-11 mm tall, fused into erect cylinder ±5 mm broad which entirely hides rest of gynostegium, with 5 incurved broadly obtuse to emarginate flaps at mouth alternating with inner lobes, outside of cylinder finely setose towards base, inside smooth with 5 longitudinal ridges joining towards base to dorsal surface of inner lobes; inner lobes 4.5-6.0 mm long, erect then connivent in upper half, laterally flattened, linear, tapering to slender terete obtuse apex, dorsally broadened towards base and for ± lower 1.5 mm fused to sides of outer corona tube.