RevisionMonsteraCentral AmericaTomVersionCK - TD30Jun

Revision of Monstera of
Central America
Thomas B. Croat
P. A. Schulze Curator
Missouri Botanical Garden
Key to sections of Monstera
Juvenile plants with leaves long-petiolate and
spreading.
• Pistils 10-18 mm diam. in fruit; seeds 16-22 cm
diam. sect. Tornelia
• Pistils 5-8 mm diam.; seeds 5-13 mm diam.
sect. Monstera
Juvenile plants with shingle leaves, tightly appressed
to tree and with short petioles.
• Flowering spadix erect. sect. Monstera
• Flowering spadix pendent, adult leaf with ligule
about as long as petiole. sect. Echinospadix
Monstera last revised by Madison (1977)
22 species, 3 varieties
4 sections
• Sect. Tornelia 1 sp.
• Sect. Monstera 13 spp.
• Sect. Marcgraviopsis 7 spp.
• Sect. Echinospadix 1 sp.
All except 2 of Madison’s species were native to Central America.
One additional species, M. lechleriana is endemic to South America but reported

for Central America based on misdetermined material.
Presently there are 94 species

• Sect. Monstera 28 spp.
• Sect. Marcgraviopsis 12 spp.
• Sect. Tornelia 1 sp.
• Sect Echinospadix 1 sp.
• Unknown sections 52 spp.
Number of Species per Country
11 Mexico
8 Guatemala
6
1 Belize
64 7
El Salvador
9 Honduras
Nicaragua
Costa Rica
40 Panama
All Monstera Species in Central America 92
• Mexico 11
• Guatemala 8
• Belize 6
• El Salvador 1
• Honduras 7
• Nicaragua 9
• Costa Rica 40
• Panama 64
Middle America 47 (All of Central America

except Mexico and Panama)
Number of Endemic Species per
country
Mexico
Belize
Honduras
Costa Rica
Panama
Endemic Species in Central America
4 1 Mexico
2
Guatemala
Belize
El Salvador
21
Honduras
43
Nicaragua
Costa Rica
Panama
Characteristics of Monstera
• Internodes coarse and tough with roots mostly on one side of stem
• Roots dense, capable of growing into cracks
• Petioles typically almost fully sheathed
• Sheath persisting or deciduous
• Juvenile growth scototropic
• Juvenile leaves diverse in shape and form
• Leaf blades highly diverse
- Entire
- Pinnately lobed
- Perforated
- Perforated becoming pinnate
• Major veins sunken and concolorous above, narrowly rounded and paler below
• Reticulate venation reticulate
• Inflorescence 1-several per axil
• Peduncle variation
• Spathe thick and caducous
• Pollination by beetles at night
• Spadix cylindroid
• Flowers hermaphroditic
• Stigmas circular or oblong, berries with large seeds
Pinnately lobed Perforate in several
series
Leaf blade diversity
Entire blades Partly perforate

with ripping out
Spathe spadix proportions
M. egregia M. tarzuensis
M. deliciosa
M. acuminata
Monstera sp. nov. Boquete
Fruit type and dehiscence
M. obliqua
M. anomala M. acuminata
Preparing a working key
Blade with reticulate venation Blade with parallel venation

Key to Monstera of Central America
1. Adult leaf blades with secondary venation completely reticulate.
2. Petiole sheath persistent.
M. membranacea Madison
M. florescanoana Croat, Krömer & Acebey
2. Petiolar sheath deciduous.
3. Peduncles longer than the spadix. M. zhuii Croat
3. Peduncles shorter or longer than the spadix.
4. Petioles longer or equal to the length of the midrib of the leaf blade.
M. deliciosa Liebm.
4. Petioles shorter than the midrib of the leaf blade.
6. Stems of adult plants more or less flattened laterally M . filamentosa
5. Stems of adult plants subcylindric.
6. Leaf blades regularly M. punctulata (Schott) Schott ex Engl.
6. Leaf blades not regularly pinnatifid.
7. Leaf blades to rounded at base. M. dubia
7. Leaf blades broadly cordate at the base.
M. siltepecana
1. Adult leaf blades with secondary venation parallel.
Additional Key Characters involving Stems
and Petioles
2. Petiole sheath persistent.

M. membranacea
M. florescanoana
2. Petiolar sheath deciduous.
3. Peduncles longer than the spadix. M. zhuii
3. Peduncles shorter or longer than the spadix.
4. Petioles longer or equal to the length of the midrib of the leaf blade. M. deliciosa
4. Petioles shorter than the midrib of the leaf blade.
5. Stems of adult plants more or less flattened laterally.
M. filamentosa
5. Stems of adult plants subcylindric.
6. Leaf blades regularly pinnatifid. M. punctulata
6. Leaf blades not regularly pinnatifid.
7. Leaf blades to rounded at base. M. dubia
7. Leaf blades broadly cordate at the base. M. siltepecana
Key Characters of Blade Perforations.
9. Leaf blades regularly pinnatifid (rarely on one side only).

10. Leaf blades lacking perforations.
11. Pinnae 15–30 pairs; flowering spadix 3.5–5 cm diam.;
Nicaragua to Panama. M. tenuis
11. Pinnae 4–12 pairs; flowering spadix 1–3 cm diam.
12. Leaf blades broadly cordate at base M. deliciosa
12. Leaf blades truncate to acute at base
Additional Key Characters for Monstera-
Peduncle & Spadix Proportions
32. Peduncles shorter than the spadix.
33. Leaf blades generally perforate; petiole sheath deciduous or
persisting entire.
M. barvaensis Croat
34. Spadices with stigmas rounded or subrounded.
M. quereteroensis
34. Spadices with stigma oblong.
35. Internodes 5–11 cm long. M. acuminata
35. Internodes short.
33. Leaf blades lacking perforations M. anomala
32. Peduncles longer than the spadix.
34a. Inflorescence with spadix narrow, more than 6 times longer than wide.
35. Petioles asperous-verrucose. M. ortizii, M. moralesii, M.
garwoodiae, M. buseyi, M. costaricensis
35. Petioles glabrous and more or less smooth.
M. cf. acuminata, Carnevali 6288
Monstera acuminata, Diaz 613
M. acuminata,
Tabasco, vic. Teapa
Monstera
acuminata
M. adansonii var.
laniata
Monstera anomala
Monstera bocatorensis,
Hammel 14599
Monstera
copensis
Monstera deliciosa
Monstera deliciosa,
Cult. Honduras
Monstera dubia, juvenile leaves, Mexico, Palenque
Monstera dubia
Monstera donosoenensis
Monstera dwyeri Croat
Monstera
egregia
Schott’s Illustration
Monstera egregia
Monstera filamentosa,
Grayum 8762
M. florescanoana
T. Kröemer Veracruz (type)
Monstera florescanoana
Monstera florescanoana
Monstera integrifolia
Monstera obliqua
Cerro Jefe, Ortiz
M. obliqua
M. pinnatipartita, Monteverde,Costa
Rica
Monstera pinnatipartita,
Croat 82540
Monstera punctulata
M. punctulata
M. spruceana, Croat 74126
nster
Monstera
standleyana
Monstera tarrazuensis
M. tarrazuensis
M. tenuis,
Boquete Area,
Panama
Monstera tiribiensis, Grayum, 3404
Monstera
tuberculata
Monstera with bicolored leaves
Panama,
Boquete to
Santa Clara
Monstera
alfaroi
Monstera
allenii
Monster
alfaroi
Monstera
alticola
Monstera
alticola
Monstera copensis
Monstera
costaricensis
Monstera
deliciosa
Monstera
dilacerata
Monstera
dissecta
Monstera
dissecta
Monstera
donosoensis
Monstera
donosoensis
Monstera
dubia
Monstera dubia
Mostera dubia
Monstera
dwyeri
Monstera
egregia
Monstera
epipremnoides
Monstera
epipremnoides
Monstera
diseccta
Monstera
glaucescens
Monstera
golfitoensis Croat
Monstera
golfitoensis
Croat
Monstera grayumii
Croat
Monstera
hammelii Croat
Monstera
hammelii Croat
Xanthosoma
hannonii Croat
Monstera
hornitioensis
Croat
Monstera
ibaneziae Croat
Monstera
intregrifolia
Zuluaga & Croat
Monstera
knappiae Croat
Monstera lentii
Croat & Grayum
Monstera lentii
Croat & Grayum
Monstera luteynii Madison

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Revision of Monstera of

All except 2 of Madison’s species were native to Central America.

One additional species, M. lechleriana is endemic to South America but reported

Presently there are 94 species

Middle America 47 (All of Central America

Leaf blade diversity

Entire blades Partly perforate

Blade with reticulate venation Blade with parallel venation

2. Petiole sheath persistent.

9. Leaf blades regularly pinnatifid (rarely on one side only).

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