Palicourea stipularis

Palicourea stipularis is a Neotropical shrub or small understory tree of the Rubiaceae family, native to Andean cloud forests of Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia, where it occurs from about 1000 to 2800 m elevation. The plant typically grows 1.5-5 m tall, with slender, glabrous to slightly pubescent stems. The opposite, simple, elliptic to oblong-elliptic leaves are 8-20 cm long, dark green and glabrous above, paler beneath, with entire margins, acute to acuminate apices, and prominent pinnate venation. The species is distinguished by its conspicuous, persistent, foliaceous interpetiolar stipules from which it takes its name. Inflorescences are terminal, branched panicles bearing numerous tubular flowers in showy red, orange, or yellow combinations typical of hummingbird-pollinated Palicourea, with the corolla 1-2 cm long. The fruit is a small, fleshy, ovoid drupe ripening from green to dark blue or black, dispersed by understory birds. The genus is alkaloid-rich, and many species contain bioactive monoterpenoid indole alkaloids.