Nepenthes tentaculata /nɪˈpɛnθiːz tɛnˌtækjʊˈlɑːtə/, or the fringed pitcher-plant,[3] is a tropical pitcher plant with a wide distribution across Borneo and Sulawesi.

It grows at altitudes of 400–2550 m.[4] The specific epithet tentaculata is derived from the Latin word tentacula, meaning "tentacles", and refers to the multicellular appendages on the upper surface of the pitcher lid.

Nepenthes tentaculata was formally described by Joseph Dalton Hooker in his 1873 monograph, "Nepenthaceae",[2] based on specimens collected by Thomas Lobb in 1853.

[3] In subsequent years, N. tentaculata was featured in a number of publications by eminent botanists such as Frederick William Burbidge (1882),[5] Odoardo Beccari (1886),[6] Ernst Wunschmann (1891),[7] Otto Stapf (1894),[8] Günther Beck von Mannagetta und Lerchenau (1895),[9] Jacob Gijsbert Boerlage (1900),[10] Elmer Drew Merrill (1921),[11] and Frederik Endert (1925).

[14] An emended Latin diagnosis[note a] and botanical description of N. tentaculata were provided by B. H. Danser in his seminal monograph "The Nepenthaceae of the Netherlands Indies", published in 1928.

[1] This agrees with an informal assessment made by Charles Clarke in 1997, who also classified the species as Least Concern based on the IUCN criteria.

However, the upper pitchers of N. muluensis are distinctive; they usually have a white lid, a round mouth, and their wings are either greatly reduced or absent altogether.

[3][16] Nepenthes murudensis differs in lacking filiform hairs on the upper surface of the lid, being more robust in all respects, and having a dense indumentum on inflorescences and some vegetative parts.

[16][24][25] However, a number of populations of N. tentaculata from northern Sarawak produce pitchers exceeding 20 cm in height and these may be very similar in appearance to N.

Although N. tentaculata is variable in this respect, plants from Mount Murud usually produce upper pitchers with wings.

[29] The authors distinguished the taxon from N. muluensis on the basis of its branched spur and the presence of fringe hairs on the top of the lid.

Chromatographic patterns of the N. × sarawakiensis samples studied showed complementation of its putative parental species.

This agrees with the findings of previous authors[30][31] and suggests that the absence of a widely distributed compound like myricetin among the Nepenthes examined might provide additional diagnostic information for these taxa.

[citation needed] Folia mediocria sessilia, lamina elliptica ad lanceolata, nervis longitudinalibus utrinque 2–8, plerumque 4, basi profunde oblique amplicauli fere, in alas 2 decurrente ; ascidia rosularum ignota ; ascidia inferiora parva, ovato-conica, alis 2 fimbriatis, peristomio operculum versus acuminato, cylindrico, ad l l/2 mm lato, costis c. 1/2 mm distantibus v. indistinctis, dentibus 0 ; operculo ovato, facie exteriore plerumque appendicibus filiformibus, superea basi fascibus 2 filorum ramosorum, facie inferiore plana ; ascidia superiora magnitudine mediocria, subtubulosa, parte inferiore paulum dilatata, alis 2 fimbriatis raro costis 2 prominentibus ; peristomio operculum versus acuminato, cylindrico v. applanato, 1–5 mm lato, costis 1/2-1/3 mm distantibus, saepe indistinctis, dentibus 0 ; operculo ovato raro rotundato-elliptico, facie superiore plerumque appendicibus filiformibus, prope basim 2 fascibus filorum ramosorum, facie inferiore plana ; inflorescentia racemus parvus pedicellis plerumque 2–4, raro ad 15 mm longis, omnibus 1-floris ; indumentum in ascidiis iuvenilibus et in inflorescentiis parcum stellatum adpressum, ceterum 0.