Mitrephora polypyrena is a species of plant in the family Annonaceae. It is native to Java, the Lesser Sunda Islands, and Myanmar. Carl Ludwig Blume, the German botanist who first formally described the species using the basionym Uvaria polypyrena, named it after the many stones or seeds (Latinized forms of Greek , poly-, and , pyren) in its fruit.
It is a tree reaching 20 meters in height. Its oval to lance-shaped, leathery leaves are 8-22.5 by 3.5-9 centimeters and come to a point at their tips. The leaves are smooth and shiny on their upper surfaces, while their undersides are slightly hairy. Its petioles are 4.5-11 by 1.5-3.5 millimeters. Its flowers are arranged in groups of 3 or fewer on a rachis. Each flower is on a fleshy, slightly hairy pedicel that is 1.1-1.6 by 20-40 millimeters. The pedicels have an oval, basal bract that is 4-4.5 by 2.5-4.5 millimeters, and another oval, upper bract that is 3.5-5.5 by 4.5-7 millimeters. Its flowers have 3, oval-shaped sepals that are 5-7.5 by 5.5-7.5 millimeters. The outside of the sepals are densely hairy, while their inner surfaces are smooth. Its 6 petals are arranged in two rows of 3. The yellow, oval-shaped outer petals are 24âÂÂ36 by 18-28 millimeters and come to a point at their tip. The outside surface of the outer petals are densely hairy, while their inner surface is slightly hairy. The inner petals are white with reddish-purple highlights and 17âÂÂ22 by 9.5-16 millimeters. The outside surface of the inner petals is densely hairy while the tip of the inner surface has long hairs. Its flowers have more than numerous stamen that are 1.5-1.7 by 0.5-0.6 millimeters. Its flowers have up to 24-26 free carpels that are 2-2.2 by 0.5-0.6 millimeters. The carpels have 12-14 ovules. Its fruit occur in clusters of up to 9âÂÂ12 on pedicels that are 19âÂÂ34 by 3-5 millimeters and covered in sparse, fine hairs. The round to oblong, smooth fruit are 19âÂÂ31 by 8-17 millimeters. The fruit have a longitudinal ridge and are sparsely covered in fine brown hairs. The fruit are attached to the pedicel by stipes that are 12âÂÂ21 by 2.5-4 millimeters and sparsely covered in fine brown hairs. Each fruit has 12-14 seeds that are 15âÂÂ17 by 8-9.5 millimeters.
The pollen of M. polypyrena is shed as permanent tetrads.
It has been observed growing in wet evergreen forests, at elevations of 300 to 700 meters.
It is used as timber and cultivated as a cover crop and ornamental species.