Slightly hairy exterior pitcher walls, compared to the perfectly smooth ssp. Usually more strongly veined than ssp. A stocky plant, more heavily veined than ssp.rubra , and bearing proportionally larger pitchers. Other forms exist that are taller or shorter, or have longer lids, and much hybridisation has occurred with populations of the other subspecies in some locations, resulting in a wide range of pitcher shape and colour. Red, sweet-smelling flowers.
Flower colour is quite variable, ranging from yellow through orange to red.