Liana; stems to at least 1.5 cm diam, +/- densely ferruginous-pubescent on all parts. Stipules deciduous, subsetaceous, ca 5 mm long; petioles 2-6 cm long, inconspicuously glandular toward base; blades deeply trilobate, +/- deeply cordate, 7-14 cm long, 9-14 cm wide, the lobes acute to acuminate at apex, the central lobe larger, the upper surface sparsely strigillose except on tomentulose veins, the lower surface softly ferruginous-pubescent, the glands minute, 2 to several, around base of each sinus; palmate veins 5. Flowers solitary in axils, often borne on young leafless branches, 10-15 cm wide when open; peduncles 3-5.5 cm long (to 6.5 cm long in fruit), the bracts 3, free, lanceolate, 2.5-3 cm long, glabrescent, glandular-serrate, generally with a larger (1 mm across) disk-shaped pair of glands toward the base; sepals 5, narrowly lanceolate, 6-8 cm long, l-2 cm wide, with a long slender appendage at apex; petals 5, linear-lanceolate, 4-6 cm long; both sepals and petals deep scarlet to magenta, reflexed when open; corona filaments in 3 series, the outer longest, to 2 cm long, erect, bright red or bright yellow; anthers 5, green, held perpendicular on gynophore; operculum deflexed, to 1 cm long, fimbriate; gynophore ca 1 cm long, pale red; ovary densely tomentulose. Berries ovoid, 5-8 cm diam, puberulent, greenish-yellow with darker stripes and bands of lighter splotches, very fragrant; seeds +/- flattened, ca 6 mm long and 5 mm wide, reticulate with numerous small punctations, light-colored. Croat 4766, 8319. Frequent in the forest. Flowers from December to May, elsewhere in Panama also from July to November. Fruit maturity time not determined. Native to lowland forests from Nicaragua to Venezuela and Peru; cultivated in the West Indies and elsewhere.

Descripción: Plantas trepadoras o lianas con tronco negro. Ramitas terminales verdes y con zarcillos axilares. Hojas simples y alternas, trilobuladas, de 7-15 x 8-18 cm, lóbulos con ápice agudo o acuminado, bordes dentados o aserrados y base truncada o ligeramente cordada. Estípulas pequeñas y deciduas. Pecíolo de 2-5 cm de largo y con un par de glándulas en la base. Flores rojas. Frutos elipsoidales, de 5-6 x 2-3 cm, verdes y con manchas blancas, tornándose rojos al madurar.

Especies Parecidas: A menudo se confunde con plantas del género Gurania (Cucurbitaceae), pero en Gurania las flores son más pequeñas y los zarcillos son opuestos a las hojas.