''Citrullus'' is a
genus of seven species of
desert
A desert is a barren area of landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions are hostile for plant and animal life. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About on ...
vines, among which ''Citrullus lanatus'' (the
watermelon) is an important crop.
Taxonomy
Molecular data, including sequences from the original collection of ''Momordica lanata'' made near Cape Town by C. P. Thunberg in 1773, show that what Thunberg collected is not what has been called ''Citrullus lanatus'', the domesticated watermelon, since the 1930s. Although this error only occurred in 1930 (Bailey, Gentes Herbarum 2: 180–186), it has been perpetuated in hundreds of papers on the watermelon. In addition, there is an older name for the watermelon, ''Citrullus battich''
Forssk. (Fl. Aegypt.-Arab.: 167. Jun 1775), which would normally have the precedence over ''Momordica lanata''
Thunberg (Prodr. Pl. Cap.: 13. 1794). To solve this problem, it has been proposed to conserve the name ''Citrullus lanatus'' with a new type to preserve the current sense of the name
Species
''Citrullus'' consists of the following species and subspecies:
*''
Citrullus amarus''
Schrad. –
citron melon
*''
Citrullus colocynthis''
( L.) Schrad. – colocynth
*''
Citrullus ecirrhosus
''Citrullus ecirrhosus'', commonly known as Namib tsamma, is a species of perennial desert vine in the gourd family, Cucurbitaceae, and a relative of the widely consumed watermelon (''Citrullus lanatus''). It can be found in both Namibia and Sout ...
''
Cogn. – tendril-less melon
*''
Citrullus lanatus''
( Thunb.) Matsum. & Nakai – desert watermelon
**
''Citrullus lanatus'' subsp. ''vulgaris'' var. ''cordophanus'' ( Ter-Avan.) Fursa
**
''Citrullus lanatus'' var. ''lanatus''
*''
Citrullus mucosospermus''
( Fursa) Fursa –
egusi melon
*''
Citrullus naudinianus''
( Sond.) Hook.f.
*''
Citrullus rehmii''
De Winter De Winter is a Dutch surname.http://www.meertens.knaw.nl/nfb/detail_naam.php?gba_lcnaam=de%20winter&gba_naam=de%20Winter&nfd_naam=Winter,%20de&operator=eq&taal= Notable people with the surname include:
De Winter or de Winter:
*Alfons De Winter (19 ...
References
External links
Chomicki, G., and S. S. Renner. 2015. Watermelon origin solved with molecular phylogenetics including Linnaean material: Another example of museomics. New Phytologist 205(2): 526-532
{{Taxonbar, from=Q132239
Cucurbitaceae genera
Cucurbitoideae