Galapagos Species Database
The Galapagos Species Database shares the information about the species from our Natural History Collections.
Asclepias curassavica
mata caballo, bailarina, mata caballo , mal casada, algodoncillo, bloodflower, wild ipecacuanha, butterfly weed
It is used as animal food, a poison, a medicine and invertebrate food, has environmental uses and for food (POWO, 2022).
Domain
Eukaryota
Kingdom
Plantae
Phylum
Magnoliophyta
Class
Magnoliopsida (= Dicotyledoneae)
Order
Gentianales
Family
Apocynaceae
Genus
Asclepias
Species
curassavica
Taxon category: Accepted
Family Asclepiadaceae is now Apocynaceae (updated 2021, Patricia Jaramillo & María del Mar Trigo).
Origin: Introduced - established
Year of first record: 1906
Mode of introduction: Intentional
Introduction Pathway: Intentional
Subpathway: Agriculture/Horticulture
Introduced status: Naturalized
Invasive status: Potentially Invasive
Map of specimen collection localities or observation records for this species in our collections database.
Distribution: Its native range is Mexico to Tropical America (POWO, 2022).
- Wiggins, I.L. Porter, D.M. (1971) Flora of the Galapagos Islands Standford University Press, Stanford.
- Lawesson, J.E. (s.a.) Pers. obs. field notes, collections 1985-7.
- Chavez, J. (1993) Diagnostico de la Agricultura y la Ganader¡a en la Provincia de Galapagos. Tesis.
- Tropicos.org. (2017) Database of Missouri Botanical Garden. Tropicos.org. Missouri Botanical Garden. 06 Oct 2017 <http://www.tropicos.org
- Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew Missouri Botanical Garden (eds.) (2013) The Plant List, Version 1.1. Published on the Internet; http://www.theplantlist.org/ (accessed 1st January).
- Stewart, A. (1911) A botanical survey of the Galápagos Islands. Proc. Calif. Acad. Sci. 4th Series, 1: 7-288.
- Christophersen, E. (1932) A Collection of Plants from the Galápagos Islands. Nyt Mag. Naturvidenskaberne 70: 67-95.
- Quintana, M.C. (2010) Wild plants in the dry valleys around Quito-Ecuador. Publicaciones del Herbario QCA, PUCE. Quito-Ecuador, 266 pp.
- Guézou, A. Trueman, M., Buddenhagen, E., Chamorro, S., Guerrero, A.M., Pozo, P., Atkinson, R. (2010) An extensive Alien Plan Inventory from the Inhabited Areas of Galapagos Plos One/ www.plosone.org. Volume 5/ Issue 4/e10276
- Lawesson, J.E. (1987) Plantas exóticas en las Islas Galápagos, un resumen. Memorias. Taller sobre investigación Botánica y manejo en Galápagos. Pg. 17-23.
You are welcome to download and use the information found in this page, acknowledging its source.
This page should be cited as follows:
"Galapagos Species Database, Asclepias curassavica", dataZone. Charles Darwin Foundation, https://datazone.darwinfoundation.org/en/checklist/?species=192. Accessed 24 April 2025.