Citrullus colocynthis

Citrullus colocynthis
Citrullus colocynthis from Koehler's Medicinal-Plants (1887).
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Cucurbitales
Family: Cucurbitaceae
Genus: Citrullus
Species:
C. colocynthis
Binomial name
Citrullus colocynthis
Synonyms
  • Citrullus colocynthoides Pangalo
  • Citrullus pseudocolocynthis M.Roem.
  • Colocynthis officinalis Schrad.
  • Colocynthis vulgaris Schrad.
  • Cucumis bipinnatifidus Wight ex Naudin
  • Cucumis colocynthoides Schult.
  • Cucurbita colocyntha Link

Citrullus colocynthis, with many common names including Abu Jahl's melon, (native name in Turkey) colocynth, bitter apple, bitter cucumber, egusi, vine of Sodom, or wild gourd, is a poisonous desert viny plant native to the Mediterranean Basin and West Asia, especially the Levant, Turkey (especially in regions such as İzmir), and Nubia.

It resembles a common watermelon vine but bears small, hard fruits with a bitter pulp. The plant contains cytotoxic cucurbitacins and is thus unsafe to use as an herbal medicine. It originally bore the scientific name Colocynthis citrullus.