Datura ferox

Raab-Straube, Eckhard von & Raus, Thomas, 2023, Euro + Med-Checklist Notulae, 16, Willdenowia 53 (1), pp. 57-77 : 71

Datura ferox L.

A Tn: Tunisia, Gafsa, Gafsa South, Kef Derbi, 34°37'45''N, 08°35'06''E, 510 m, along roadside, 27 May 2022, El Mokni (Herb. Univ. Monastir). – As part of ongoing studies on updating the list of Tunisian alien flora mainly within the Solanaceae (see, e.g., El Mokni 2018, 2019a, 2019b; El Mokni & Domina 2020), we report here a casual alien species new for the alien flora of Tunisia (Gafsa). Like all species of Datura L., D. ferox seems to be native to Central America (principally Mexico) and the S U.S.A. ( Symon & Haegi 1991; Geeta & Gharaibeh 2007). It is an annual herb growing up to 50 cm tall. The plant has become a significant weed of summer crops and pastures in many subtropical and warm-temperate parts of the world ( CABI 2023). For N Africa, it is reported only as naturalized in Algeria, but there was no mention for Tunisia ( Valdés 2012 +; Dobignard & Chatelain 2013; APD 2023). In 2022, a few individuals were discovered growing along roadsides near Kef Derbi (Gafsa South). In Tunisia, the species seems to be a recent introduction by human activities and can therefore be considered as a casual alien. This is its second report for N Africa. An analytical key is proposed here for Tunisian species of the genus Datura (based on Dupin & Smith 2018).