Cucurbitaceae
Cucumis

Cucumis pustulatus Naudin ex Hook.f.

First published in D.Oliver & auct. suc. (eds.), Fl. Trop. Afr. 2: 544 (1871)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is Mali to Arabian Peninsula and Tanzania. It is a scrambling perennial and grows primarily in the desert or dry shrubland biome.

Descriptions

M. Thulin et al. Flora of Somalia, Vol. 1-4 [updated 2008] https://plants.jstor.org/collection/FLOS

Morphology General Habit
Trailing or scandent perennial herb to 2 m
Morphology Leaves
Leaf-blade ovate to broadly ovate, subcordate, sinuate-dentate, harshly hispid or scabrid, 3–10 x 2.5–8 cm, palmately (3–)5-lobed, lobes ovate-triangular to ovate-oblong, rounded, the central largest; petiole 1.3–4.5 cm long
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Monoecious
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers
Male flowers solitary or in small clusters Female flowers solitary
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Pedicel
Pedicels 4–15(–22) mm long Pedicel 3–7 cm long, thickened towards the apex Pedicels 3.8–6.5 cm long
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Hypanthium
Hypanthium (3–)5 mm long
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx
Sepals linear, 2–3 mm long
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla
Petals yellow, 5–8 mm long
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Ovary
Ovary ellipsoid, 6–13 mm long, tuberculate-scabrid
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Perianth
Perianth as in male flowers
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Fruit obtusely ellipsoid to cylindrical, 5–6.5(–10) x 3–5 cm, tuberculate, green, ripening yellow, the tubercles obscure to prominent, 1–7 mm long
Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds
Seeds elliptic in outline, 6–6.5 mm long.
Distribution
N2, 3; S1 Eritrea, Ethiopia, west to Nigeria, south to S Tanzania, north to Arabia.
Ecology
Altitude range c. 300–1600 m.
Note
The records from N2 and N3 are preliminary. They are based on incomplete specimens.
[FSOM]

Cucurbitaceae, Hutchinson and Dalziel. Flora of West Tropical Africa 1:1. 1954

Morphology General Habit
A ground-trailer from a perennial base
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers
Flowers yellow
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Fruit uniformly grey-green in colour.
[FWTA]

Extinction risk predictions for the world's flowering plants to support their conservation (2024). Bachman, S.P., Brown, M.J.M., Leão, T.C.C., Lughadha, E.N., Walker, B.E. https://nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/nph.19592

Conservation
Predicted extinction risk: not threatened. Confidence: confident
[AERP]

Sources

  • Angiosperm Extinction Risk Predictions v1

    • Angiosperm Threat Predictions
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

  • Flora of Somalia

    • Flora of Somalia
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Flora of West Tropical Africa

    • Flora of West Tropical Africa
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Herbarium Catalogue Specimens

    • 'The Herbarium Catalogue, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published on the Internet http://www.kew.org/herbcat [accessed on Day Month Year]'. Please enter the date on which you consulted the system.
    • Digital Image © Board of Trustees, RBG Kew http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

  • Kew Backbone Distributions

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2026. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2026. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0