''Citrullus ecirrhosus'', commonly known as Namib tsamma, is a species of

perennial In horticulture, the term perennial ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the year") is used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. It has thus been defined as a plant that lives more than 2 years. The term is also ...

desert A desert is a landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions create unique biomes and ecosystems. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About one-third of the la ...

vine A vine is any plant with a growth habit of trailing or scandent (that is, climbing) stems, lianas, or runners. The word ''vine'' can also refer to such stems or runners themselves, for instance, when used in wicker work.Jackson; Benjamin; Da ...

in the gourd family,

Cucurbitaceae The Cucurbitaceae (), also called cucurbits or the gourd family, are a plant family (biology), family consisting of about 965 species in 101 genera.

, and a relative of the widely consumed

watermelon The watermelon (''Citrullus lanatus'') is a species of flowering plant in the family Cucurbitaceae, that has a large, edible fruit. It is a Glossary of botanical terms#scandent, scrambling and trailing vine-like plant, and is plant breeding ...

(''Citrullus lanatus''). It can be found in both

Namibia Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country on the west coast of Southern Africa. Its borders include the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south; in the no ...

and the

Cape Provinces The Cape Provinces of South Africa is a biogeographical area used in the World Geographical Scheme for Recording Plant Distributions (WGSRPD). It is part of the WGSRPD region 27 Southern Africa. The area has the code "CPP". It includes the Sou ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

, in particular the

Namib Desert The Namib ( ; ) is a coastal desert in Southern Africa. According to the broadest definition, the Namib stretches for more than along the Atlantic coasts of Angola, Namibia, and northwest South Africa, extending southward from the Carunjamba Ri ...

. It is the sister species to the bitter melon, '' Citrullus amarus'' with which it shares hard, white and bitter flesh. The vines can crawl for up to two metres, and it has yellow flowers. As a desert plant, it is a hardy species, surviving with little water and strong sunlight. The leaves form annual stems which die back each year. The plant relies on water deep in the ground and morning fogs. It is an important source of water for numerous desert fauna. The bitter-tasting fruit it produces are known as tsamma melons.

Distribution and habitat

The Namib tsamma is found in

Succulent Karoo The Succulent Karoo is an terrestrial ecoregion, ecoregion defined by the World Wide Fund for Nature to include regions of deserts and xeric shrublands, desert in South Africa and Namibia, and a biodiversity hotspot. The geographic area chosen ...

habitat in dry watercourses. It has a limited distribution in South Africa. Its range is from the Richtersveld up to the western Namib in Namibia.

Cultivation

Experiments done by Simmons, Jarret, Cantrell, and Amnon in 2019 introduced the hybridisation of ''Citrullus ecirrhosus'' and ''

Citrullus lanatus The watermelon (''Citrullus lanatus'') is a species of flowering plant in the family Cucurbitaceae, that has a large, edible fruit. It is a scrambling and trailing vine-like plant, and is widely cultivated worldwide, with more than 1,000 ...

'' developed a cultivated watermelon capable of resistance to pests such as whiteflies ('' Bemisia tabaci''). The hybrid developed whitefly resistance while still retaining traits of

(''Citrullus lanatus''). While the hybrid did not offer total resistance, it was better protected than regular grown watermelons.Simmons, A. M., Jarret, R. L., Cantrell, C. L., & Amnon, L. (2019, October). Citrullus ecirrhosus: Wild Source of Resistance Against Bemisia tabaci (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) for Cultivated Watermelon.

Conservation status

In South Africa, the Namib tsamma is classified as least concern.

Gallery

File:Namib Tsamma melon (Citrullus ecirrhosus) 10.jpg, Seeds File:Namib Tsamma melon (Citrullus ecirrhosus) 6.jpg, Ripening melons File:Tsamma-Melone in der Namibwüste.jpg, Tsamma melons in the

Namib The Namib ( ; ) is a coastal desert in Southern Africa. According to the broadest definition, the Namib stretches for more than along the Atlantic coasts of Angola, Namibia, and northwest South Africa, extending southward from the Carunjamba Ri ...

desert

References

External links

Bihrmann's caudiciforms
ecirrhosus Melons Flora of the Cape Provinces Flora of Namibia Desert fruits Drought-tolerant plants Taxa named by Alfred Cogniaux {{Cucurbitales-stub