Epiphyte, scandent; stems usually to 1 m or longer, 1-1.5 cm diam., internodes 4-20 cm long; leaf scars 8-14 mm wide; roots numerous at each node, descending; cataphylls subcoriaceous, 2.5-8.5 cm long, drying yellow to tan (B & K Yellow- red 9/10), persisting as linear fibers at each node.

LEAVES spreading; petioles 20-60 cm long, 2-3 mm diam., terete, shallowly sulcate; geniculum 0.3-0.9 cm long, more deeply sulcate than petiole; blades ovate, 22-60 cm long, 20-40 cm wide, 5-, 7-, or 9- pedatisect, the leaflets moderately thin, elliptic lo ovate-elliptic, 7-27 cm long, 3-8 mm wide, long-acuminate at apex, acute to attenuate at base; petiolules to 5.5 cm long, 1-2 mm diam., broadly and sharply sulcate; upper surface semiglossy, lower surface semiglossy to matte; midrib prominulous above, prominently raised below; primary lateral veins 5-18 per side. sunken above, raised below, departing midrib at 45°-55° angle, loop-connecting, weakly sunken above, raised below; collective vein arising from one of the lowermost primary lateral veins, 3-8 mm from margin.

INFLORESCENCE spreading to arching, longer or shorter than the leaves; peduncle 20-55 cm long, terete; spathe green or sometimes slightly tinged purple, oblong-lanceolate, 5.5-15.5 cm long, 0.8-2.5 cm wide, acuminate at apex, acute to obtuse at base, inserted at 50°-70° angle on peduncle; stipe 5-9 mm long in front, 0.5-3.5 mm long in back; spadix pale green fading to tan at anthesis, 7-21 cm long, 5-10 mm diam. at base, 1-4 mm diam. At apex; the flowers rhombic to 4-lobed, 3.5-4 mm long, 2.5-3 mm wide, the sides straight to sigmoid; 5-9 flowers visible in the principal spiral, 5-7 flowers visible in the alternate spiral; tepals matte, minutely papillate, lateral tepals 1-1.5 mm long, the inner margin convex and upturned; pistils not emergent, pale green, matte, minutely papillate; stigma linear, ca. 0.5 mm long; stamens emerging slowly from base, the alternate pair emerging at base when the lateral stamens have emerged ca. one-third the length, held close around the pistil; anthers creamy white, 0.3-0.4 mm long, 0.6-0.9 mm wide; thecae ellipsoid, widely divaricate; pollen white.

INFRUCTESCENCE pendent; spadix lo 25 cm long; berries purple to violet-purple. Figs. 90 and 91.
 

Anthurium kunthii ranges from Costa Rica lo Peru. In Costa Rica it is known only from tropical moist forest in Lim—n Province. In Panama it occurs in tropical moist and premontane wet forest on both slopes at elevations below 500 m. Because of its palmately compound leaves, A. kunthii is confused only with A. pentaphyllum var. bombacifolium. Anthurium kunthii differs by having long, slender peduncles, nearly equalling the petioles in length, and by having a slender, elongate, usually greenish spadix. It also differs from A. pentaphyllum var. bombacifolium in having leaflets distinctly petiolulate and more or less equilateral at the base. Anthurium pentaphyllum var. bombacifolium usually has at least the outer leaflets inequilateral at the base, a short peduncle, and a pale violet-purple spadix. The species is a member of section Dactylophyllium.
 
 
 
 
 

Map of Mesoamerican specimens with coordinates

Costa Rica Alajuela: 880 m,, 9 julio 1985, William A. Haber & Eric Bello C. 1885 (MO).
Costa Rica Lim—n: 150 m, 09.39N 83.02W, 1 August 1985, Michael H. Grayum, B. Hammel, L. Bermúdez & R. Acosta 5790 (MO).
Costa Rica Lim—n: 5 m, 09.38N 82.39W, 2 Nov 1984, Michael Grayum & Willie Burton 4313 (MO).
Costa Rica Lim—n: 40 m, 09.37.00N 82.39.30W, 4 Nov 1984, Michael Grayum, Willie Burton & Ernesto Salazar 4386 (MO).
Costa Rica Lim—n: 25-30 m, 09.34N 82.40W, 18 Nov 1984, Michael Grayum, Gerardo Herrera & Felipe Chavarría 4473 (MO).
Costa Rica Lim—n: 80-160 m, 10.06.00N 83.28.30W, 4 Oct 1986, Michael H. Grayum, Nelson Zamora & José Berrocal 7692 (MO).
Costa Rica Lim—n: 100 m, 9.30.10N 82.57.50W, 29 June 1989, Gerardo Herrera 3064 (MO). Costa Rica Puntarenas:, 1896, Tonduz 9944 (BR).
Costa Rica Puntarenas: 200 m, 8.44N 83.36W, 2 May 1988, Barry Hammel R. Robles & J. Marín 16800 (CR, MO).
Costa Rica Puntarenas: R.F. Golfo Dulce; Península de Osa, 300-400 m, 08.32N 83.26W, 5 May 1993, Reinaldo Aguilar 1840 (CR).
Costa Rica Puntarenas: Refugio de Vida Silvestre, 0-345 m, 08.39N 83.10W, 8 Apr 1994, Herrera, G. & G. Rivera 7025 (CR).
Costa Rica San José: Corcovado National Park, 10 m, 08.29N 83.35W, 15 Dec 1989, Merz 532 (CR).
Costa Rica San José: Corcovado National Park, 10 m, 08.29N 83.35W, 7 Dec 1989, Merz 444 (CR).
Nicaragua Chontales:, 1868, Tate 402 (K). Panama Bocas del Toro: 120 m, 8.55N 82.10W, 5 March 1986, Gordon McPherson 8568 (MO).
Panama Bocas del Toro: 25 m, 9.5N 81.50W, 10 August 1987, Gordon McPherson 11446 (MO).
Panama Bocas del Toro: 500-700 m, 8.45N 82.15W, 27 May 1988, Gordon McPherson 12542 (MO).
Panama Bocas del Toro: 350-500 m, 8.54N 82.10W, 10 Mar 1986, Barry Hammel, G. McPherson & L. Sanders 14723 (MO).
Panama CoclŽ: Rivera Sawmill,, , Folsom 3228 (MO).
Panama CoclŽ: 700 m, 8.47N 80.28W, 11 Dec. 1983, H.W. Churchill, A. Lier, W.S. Armbruster & A. Herzig 4069 (MO).
Panama Col—n: 350 m, 9.20N 79.45W, 13 May 1986, Greg de Nevers, G. McPherson & H. Herrera 7742 (MO).
Panama Col—n: ca. 0 m,, 22 March 1976, Thomas B. Croat 33531 (MO).
Panama Darien: 200-450 m, 07.58N 77.43W, 27 July 1994, Thomas B. Croat & Guanghua Zhu 77122 (MO).
Panama Darien: 500-1000 m, 7.55N 77.40W, 23 September 1982, Clem Hamilton & H. Stockwell 1502 (MO).
Panama Darien: 300-500 m, 07.58N 78.23W, 24 Mayo 1991, H. Herrera, G. McPherson, N. Hensold, J. Polanco y G. Palacios 992 (MO).
Panama Darien: 50-100 m, 08.00N 77.45W, 9 Febrero 1991, H. Herrera 912 (MO).
Panama Darien: Río Chucunaque,, , Stern et al. 868 (GH).
Panama Darien: 800-850 m, 8.03.5N 77.17W, 19 Oct 1987, B. Hammel G. de Nevers, H. Cuadros & H. Herrera 16302 (MO).
Panama Darien: 1000-1200 m, 8.04N 77.16W, 22 Oct 1987, B. Hammel G. de Nevers, H. Cuadros & H. Herrera 16419 (MO).
Panama Panamá:, 3 March 1983, C. Hamilton & K. Krager 3198 (MO).
Panama Panamá: 100 m, 8.51N 78.34W, 25-26 Jan. 1984, H.W. Churchill & G. de Nevers 4351 (MO).
Panama San Blas: 100-300 m, 9.23N 78.48W, 24 June 1986, Greg de Nevers, H. Herrera & Ernesto Gernado 7984 (MO).
Panama San Blas: 350-350 m, 9.19N 78.55W, 4 Nov. 1984, Greg de Nevers & H. Herrera 4190 (MO).