This is the Trus MadiNepenthes lowiifield report I promised a couple of days ago. Embarking on that Borneo trip in spring 2016, one of the carnivorous plants I wanted to see the most was that emblematic species. Nepenthes lowii is an incredible looking plant, one that looks both beautiful, elegant and eerie at the same time, at least to me.
Trus Madi granted us (I was co-leading an orchid enthusiasts group with my friend Dr. Alastair Robinson) with some botanical wonders including orchids and giant pitcher plants that were as equally as thrilling as the Lowe's Pitcher Plant. We found an isolated impressive Nepenthes lowii on our first day on Gunung Trus Madi and it was a special moment but nothing could have prepared me with the experience of observing dozens and dozens Nepenthes lowii in the wild.
Trus Madi seems to harbor a healthy population of N. lowii but the mountain is quite often visited by visitors, especially carnivorous plant enthusiast. The population balance is fragile though as for all the species that are bound to meet with mankind on a regularly basis. Although I couldn't see evidence of it during my ascent at the time, I know there's some poaching around and the pictures that sometimes surfaced on the internet showing unrooted mature plants are sad reminders of what collectors greed can trigger (Indeed, in that particular case, I blame more the buyers than the sellers).
Anyway, let us enjoy this wonderful species while we can. Despite the best efforts that some of us sustain to keep this plant in artificial conditions, nothing beats the sight of Nepenthes lowii in its homeland. As the blog post title says: follow me on Trus Madi... ;-)
A male plant.
One of the mountain ridges.
Mount Kinabalu in the distance.
The main trail.
The sympatric Nepenthes tentaculata:
Some Nepenthes lowii surrounded by ferns (Dipteris conjugata here) and other plants.
ViningNepenthes lowii.
Female plants.
A large immature infructescence.
Another ripe one that has released all of its seed.
The two infructescences that were belonging to the same plant.
A dried pitcher. There were unfortunately quite a lot of them around since the El Nino event was particularly strong last year.
Some Nepenthes lowii were growing together with the impressive Nepenthes macrophylla. What a delight to see both species together.
A freshly openedN. lowii pitcher.
Some beautiful upper pitchers. Unfortunately, I miss the lower ones although. I might be able to edit this post with some pictures from a couple of friends who had actually saw a few while they were with me.
Many pitchers were filled with the tree shrew Tupaia montanafaeces. It was fascinating to witness this symbiotic relation first hand.
Some pitchers were bruised. If you look carefully, you will see some scratches on the peristome margin that are likely due to the Tupaia claws while it is climbing on the pitcher mouth to lick the pitcher exudate. Strangely, I couldn't find find any of that famous white sugary secretion during my couple of days on Trus Madi.
More upper pitchers.
Sorry I couldn't help to squeeze a picture of me in that post. ;-)
Some plants and pitchers with the filtered sunlight.
Nepenthes lowiiincredible 'mouth', a trait shared only with its close relative Nepenthes ephippiata.
Climbing Gunung Trus Madi to see its pitcher plants was a great experience, one I highly recommend and one I hope to live again in the close future...
... and I had the best company ever. ^^
