Observations: —1. Rosettes 85–150 cm diam.; inflorescences 2- or 3-divided panicles, stipes of branches 2–10 cm long; staminate flowers infundibuliform; sepals white with brown to green dots, 1–3.2 mm long, petals white; mature fruits appressed to the rachis of the branches; tropical deciduous forest ... M. guatemalensis (Mez) I. Ramírez & K. Romero
1′. Rosettes 20–70 cm diam.; inflorescences a spike or panicle, rarely 2-divided panicles, stipes absent or < 4 cm long; staminate flowers campanulate; sepals reddish to green, 3–5 mm long; petals white with reddish apex or completely white; mature fruits not appressed to the rachis; pine-oak forests, rarely tropical deciduous forests ... 2
2. Pistillate inflorescences branched, ascending, ≤ 15 cm long; flowers densely arranged along the inflorescence branches (ca. 21 to 24 staminate flowers and 28 to 30 pistillate for every 3 cm); floral bracts as long as or longer than the sepals of staminate flowers and the ovary of pistillate flowers; petals of pistillate flowers 4–4.5 mm long; fruits 6–10 mm long; Guatemala ... M. dichroantha (Donn. Sm.) I. Ramírez & K. Romero
2′. Pistillate inflorescences usually unbranched, typically reflexed (rarely ascending), branches if present ≤ 55 cm long, rarely only 2–6 cm long; flowers laxly arranged along the inflorescence branches (ca. 12 to 14 staminate flowers and 7 to 9 pistillate for every 3 cm); floral bracts shorter than the sepals of staminate flowers and the ovary of pistillate flowers; petals of pistillate flowers 4.5–7 mm long; fruits (7–)9–14 mm long; Honduras and Nicaragua ... M. malvernii (Gilmartin) I. Ramírez & K. Romero
Edited from : Romero et al. 2022. A Taxonomic Revision of the Central American Genus Mesoamerantha (Bromeliaceae: Hechtioideae) .