Terrestrial or epiphytic shrub 1-2 m tall, often becoming lianoid with branches scrambling to 7 m long;  stem and twigs terete or subterete, smooth or striate, nitid, glabrous or minutely puberulous.  Leaves thinly coriaceous, oblong, elliptic, or lance-elliptic, 9-14 x 2-4.5 cm, base cuneate and decurrent on the petiole, apex long- acuminate, margin entire, glabrous or rarely nerves puberulent beneath;  3-5-plinerved, midrib and lateral nerves slightly impressed or raised above, conspicuously raised beneath, reticulate veinlets impressed or more frequently raised above, raised and usually conspicuous beneath;  petiole terete to subterete, somewhat flattened above, rugose, 4-6 mm long, glabrous or puberulent.  Inflorescence racemose, 8-20-flowered;  rachis subterete or bluntly angled, 2-10 cm long, glabrous or rarely puberulent;  floral bract ovate, acute to acuminate, 2-3(-6) x 1-1.5 mm, glabrous, marginally scarious;  pedicel cylindric, 10-29 mm long and 1-1.5 mm diam., lengthening to 40 mm after anthesis, glabrous or rarely puberulent, red to crimson;  bracteoles similar to the floral bracts, but 2-3(-5) mm long.  Flowers with the calyx ca. 4-5 mm long, usually glabrous, rarely puberulent to short-pilose;  hypanthium campanulate, slightly rugose, 2-3 mm long, dull crimson;  limb campanulate-spreading, 2-4 mm long, sometimes irregularly cleft;  lobes ovate or oblong-ovate, apiculate, 1-3 mm long, the margin thin and appearing torn, crimson tipped with yellow;  sinuses acute;  corolla cylindric, doubly constricted, narrowed at the throat, 22-33 mm long and 5-7 mm diam., glabrous or rarely puberulent, crimson to second constriction, the apex and lobes white, the lobes spreading, oblong-triangular, acute or obtuse, ca. 2-3 mm long;  stamen 8-14 mm long;  filaments connate (rarely loosely united) into a tube 3-5 mm long, distally ciliate, the connective weakly spurred to all spurred but alternately more conspicuous;  anthers 5.5-11 mm long;  thecae slightly granular, ca. 3-6.5 mm long;  tubules connate below, 2.5-4.5 mm long, dehiscing by clefts 1.5-2 mm long;  style exserted, 22-29 mm long.  Immature berry spherical, ca. 10 mm diam.

    Distribution.  Colombia and Ecuador;  lower montane wet forest to montane cloud forest, at 1100-2880 m altitude.

    Local name:  Ecuador: chacilulu.