Cyphostemma hildebrandtii (Gilg) Desc. ex Wild & R.B. Drumm.

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Cyphostemma hildebrandtii

Habit
Degraded miombo woodland
Chililabombwe District
Mar 2026
Photo: Nick Wightman

Cyphostemma hildebrandtii

Stem
Degraded miombo woodland
Chililabombwe District
Mar 2026
Photo: Nick Wightman

Cyphostemma hildebrandtii

Leaf
Degraded miombo woodland
Chililabombwe District
Mar 2026
Photo: Nick Wightman

Cyphostemma hildebrandtii

Inflorescence
Degraded miombo woodland
Chililabombwe District
Mar 2026
Photo: Nick Wightman

Cyphostemma hildebrandtii

Flowers
Degraded miombo woodland
Chililabombwe District
Mar 2026
Photo: Nick Wightman

Cyphostemma hildebrandtii

Flowers
Degraded miombo woodland
Chililabombwe District
Mar 2026
Photo: Nick Wightman

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Species details: Click on each item to see an explanation of that item (Note: opens a new window)

Synonyms: Cissus helenae Buscal. & Muschl.
Cissus hildebrandtii Gilg
Cissus penduloides Dewit.
Cyphostemma helenae (Buscal. & Muschl.) Desc.
Cyphostemma penduloides Dewit) Desc.
Common names:
Frequency:
Status: Native
Description:
Climber, or sometimes erect, 0.5–8 m tall from large fleshy rootstock; stems somewhat fleshy, rather stout, striate, pubescent or velvety with short greyish or pale ferruginous hairs and with dense purple-red usually gland-tipped hairs 5–6 mm long; tendrils present. Leaves digitately 3–5-foliolate; leaflets subsessile, elliptic to obovate, 3–18.5 cm long, 1.2–9 cm wide, acute to acuminate at the apex, cuneate at the base, crenate-serrate. Cymes lax, on axillary branches, ± 6 cm wide extending to 24 cm in fruit; peduncle 4–9 cm long with indumentum as for the stems; pedicels 3–4(–10) mm long, pubescent and with gland-tipped hairs; bracts and bracteoles filiform to linear-lanceolate, 0.6–1.5 cm long, pubescent. Buds oblong-cylindric, 3 mm long, constricted just above the middle, puberulous or glabrescent but with gland-tipped hairs at the apex. Petals red to purple, often green at tips, ± triangular, 1.5–2 mm long. Fruits red, ellipsoid, up to 1.2 cm long, 7 mm wide, covered with long red gland-tipped hairs ± 6 mm long. Seeds ellipsoid, 6.5 mm. long, 4 mm. wide; ventral median ridge strong.
Type location:
Tanzania
Notes:
Derivation of specific name: hildebrandtii: named after J.M. Hildebrandt (1847-1881), German Botanist and collector in East Africa and Madagascar.
Habitat:
Altitude range: (metres)
Flowering time:
Worldwide distribution: DR Congo, Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia, Malawi and Mozambique
Botanical divisions:
Growth form(s): Climber.
Endemic status:
Red data list status:
Insects associated with this species:
Spot characters: Display spot characters for this species
Literature:

Wild, H, Drummond, R.B. & Gonçalves, M.L. (1969). 50. Vitaceae Flora de Moçambique Junta de Investigaçoes de Ultramar, Centro de Botanica Pages 39 - 40.

Wild, H. & Drummond, R.B. (1966). Vitaceae Flora Zambesiaca 2(2) Pages 476 - 477.


Other sources of information about Cyphostemma hildebrandtii:

Our websites:

Flora of Mozambique: Cyphostemma hildebrandtii
Flora of Zambia: Cyphostemma hildebrandtii

External websites:

African Plants: A Photo Guide (Senckenberg): Cyphostemma hildebrandtii
African Plant Database: Cyphostemma hildebrandtii
BHL (Biodiversity Heritage Library): Cyphostemma hildebrandtii
EOL (Encyclopedia of Life): Cyphostemma hildebrandtii
GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility): Cyphostemma hildebrandtii
Google: Web - Images - Scholar
iNaturalist: Cyphostemma hildebrandtii
IPNI (International Plant Names Index): Cyphostemma hildebrandtii
JSTOR Plant Science: Cyphostemma hildebrandtii
Mansfeld World Database of Agricultural and Horticultural Crops: Cyphostemma hildebrandtii
Plants of the World Online: Cyphostemma hildebrandtii
Tropicos: Cyphostemma hildebrandtii
Wikipedia: Cyphostemma hildebrandtii


Copyright: The DRC flora team, 2024-26

The DRC flora team (2026). Flora of the Democratic Republic of the Congo: Species information: Cyphostemma hildebrandtii.
https://www.drcongoflora.com/speciesdata/species.php?species_id=179800, retrieved 19 August 2026

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