Terrestrial or epiphytic shrub to 2.5 m tall, with young stems, leaves beneath, and all parts of inflorescence covered by grayish-white pubescence;  stem terete, striate, glabrate;  twigs complanate, hoary.  Leaves coriaceous, sometimes bullate, elliptic or lanceolate, 2-7 x 1.5-3.5 cm, base rounded or cuneate, apex bluntly to sharply acute or short-acuminate, glabrous above, but covered beneath with short hairs so dense as to give a whitish appearance and obscure the actual surface;  3-5-plinerved from near the base, the midrib and lateral nerves slightly to deeply impressed above and raised beneath, only midrib conspicuous beneath, veinlets slightly raised but obscure on both surfaces;  petiole subterete, somewhat canaliculate abaxially, rugose, 3-7 mm long, glabrate.  Inflorescence solitary, racemose,ca. 15-flowered, weakly glandular-fimbriate and canescent-hoary throughout except for corolla;  rachis bluntly angled,ca. 2 cm long;  floral bract narrowly ovate, obtuse to acute, 3-5(-12) mm long, red, marginally glandular-fimbriate;  pedicel subterete, angled,ca. 7-9 mm long;  bracteoles located near base or about midway up the pedicel, similar to floral bract, butca. 2-4.5 mm long.  Flowers with calyxca. 4 mm long, red;  hypanthium obconic,ca. 1 mm long;  limb campanulate-rotate,ca. 3 mm long;  lobes triangular, acute, callose-spurred dorsally,ca. 0.75 mm long, the spur seemingly callose tissue dorsal to the lobe and strongly laterally compressed when dry;  sinuses acute when fresh but broadly rounded when dry;  corolla thick-carnose, globose-urceolate, very broadly pentagonal,ca. 5-8 mm long andca. 10 mm diam., obscurely pilose, with scattered glandular fimbriae, pale waxy yellow, the lobes erect-spreading, triangular,ca. 1 mm long, sometimes tipped with marronish color;  stamen ca. 4 mm long;  filaments distinct or weakly coherent at base,ca. 2-2.5 mm long, glabrous, attached to the thecae near the top, without spurs;  anthersca. 3-4 mm long;  thecae conspicuously papillose,ca. 2-3.3 mm long, very broad and strongly laterally compressed;  tubules distinct,ca. 1 mm long, dehiscing by spreading cleftsca. 0.4 mm long;  nectariferous disc annular, thick, conspicuous.  Mature berry not seen, but immature spherical,ca. 14 mm diam, turning purplish.

    Distribution.  Endemic to Ecuador (Napo Prov.);  montane wet forest to elfin forest, at 2800-3300 m altitude.  Rare and endangered.