Trichosanthes pentaphylla

Red gourd
Ripe fruit
Conservation status
Least Concern (NCA)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Rosids
Order:	Cucurbitales
Family:	Cucurbitaceae
Genus:	Trichosanthes
Species:	T. pentaphylla
Binomial name
Trichosanthes pentaphylla Benth.[2][3]

Trichosanthes pentaphylla, commonly known as red gourd, is a species of plants in the family Cucurbitaceae found only in coastal northeast Queensland, Australia. It is a tendril climber up to 15 m (49 ft) long and 4 cm (1.6 in) stem diameter. The leaves are palmately divided with 3–5 leaflets, carried on a petiole up to 7 cm (2.8 in) long. The species is dioecious, meaning that male and female flowers are borne on separate plants; both are white with fringed petals and about 4 cm (1.6 in) diameter. The fruit is bright red, ovoid, and about 7 cm (2.8 in) long by 5 cm (2.0 in) wide. The plant was first described in 1867 by English botanist George Bentham.[4][5][6]

Conservation

This species is listed as least concern under the Queensland Government's Nature Conservation Act.[1] As of 9 January 2025^[update], it has not been assessed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

References

1. "Species profile—Trichosanthes pentaphylla". Queensland Department of Environment and Science. Queensland Government. 2024. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
2. "Trichosanthes pentaphylla". Australian Plant Name Index (APNI). Centre for Australian National Biodiversity Research, Australian Government. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
3. "Trichosanthes pentaphylla F.Muell. ex Benth". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. 2025. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
4. F.A.Zich; B.P.M.Hyland; T.Whiffen; R.A.Kerrigan (2020). "Trichosanthes pentaphylla". Australian Tropical Rainforest Plants Edition 8 (RFK8). Centre for Australian National Biodiversity Research (CANBR), Australian Government. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
5. Telford, I.R.H. (2022). "Trichosanthes pentaphylla". Flora of Australia. Australian Biological Resources Study, Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water: Canberra. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
6. Bentham, George; Mueller, Ferdinand von (1866). Flora australiensis: a description of the plants of the Australian territory. Vol. 3. p. 314.

External links

• View a map of herbarium collections of this species at the Australasian Virtual Herbarium
• View observations of this species on iNaturalist
• View images of this species on Flickriver.com