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| Online Flora of the Maltese Islands by Stephen Mifsud |
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Amaranthus blitoides (Mat Amaranth) |
Amaranthus blitoides (AMARANTHACEAE.)
Images for this profile are taken from the Maltese Islands after year 2000.
Website launch: Oct-2002
Taxonomic update: Aug-2026
Code update: Jul-2026 |
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| Nomenclature and General Information |
Species name : |
Amaranthus blitoidesS.Watson
Published in Proc. Amer. Acad. Arts Sci. 12: 273 (1877) |
Synonyms :
(basionym or principal syn.) |
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Plant Family : |
Amaranthaceae Juss. (The Amaranth Family)
42 species from the Amaranthaceae family are recorded from the Maltese Islands. | English name(s) : | Mat Amaranth, Prostate Pigweed |
Maltese name(s) : |
Denb id-dib tal-ward ħamrani |
Status for Malta : |
Naturalised Alien. Species that was introduced in Malta after year 1492 (Columbus' discovery of the New World)
and spreads and integrates to form established, non-invasive populations.
Species may become become invasive if it widespreads rapidly. |
Frequency : |
Very Common Common Frequent Scarce Rare Very rare Extinct |
Growth form : |
Germination type [info]: Dicotyledon
Raunkiaer lifeform [info]: Therophyte ( annual plants, herbaceous, die after fruiting/seeding stage ) |
Legal Protection : |
Not legally protected till the last update of this website (22/Aug/2025) |
Red List (1989) : |
Not listed in the Red Data Book of the Maltese Islands |
Flowering Time : |
May – November |
Colour of Flowers: |
Inconspicuous |
Toxicity: |
Not particularly toxic |
Name Derivation : |
Amaranthus: From the Greek 'amarantos' meaning unfading. The flowers of several species have a deep purple-red colour (from which the colour amaranth is derived) which retain the colour for a very long time. (Greek origin)
blitoides: ()
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Planting in rural areas : |
Can be planted in rural areas according to ERA Guidelines |
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Description, Habitat and Distribution | |
Botanical Description |
Stems 15-50 cm, procumbent, whitish, glabrous or pubescent in the upper part. Leaves 1.5-3 cm, oblong-lanceolate to obovate-spathulate, obtuse, with distinct membranous margin. Inflorescence of short, axillary cymose clusters, leafy to the apex. Bracteoles shorter than the perianth, lanceolate. Perianth-segments 4 or 5, unequal, resembling the bracteoles; the largest 2-2.5 mm, with short acumen. Fruit dehiscing transversely. | |
Habitat in Europe |
Several anthropogenic habitats, esp. fields and farms
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Preferred habitat in Malta |
Fields and agricultural areas
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Chromosome number(s) |
2n=32 | |
Distributional range |
Naturalized in C. & S. Europe
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Native region outside Europe |
(C. & W. North America.)
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Distributional maps from various sources |
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Occurrences in Europe
(from Flora Europaea till 1993) |
Introduced in Albania, Austria and Liechtenstein, the Azores, the Balaeric Islands, Bulgaria, Corse, Crete, Czeck Republic and Slovakia, France (incl. Monaco and Channel Islands but excluding Corse), Germany, Greece, the Netherlands, Spain (incl. Andorra but excl. the Balaerics), Hungary, Italy (mainland, excl. Sicily and Sardinia), Portugal, Poland, Romania, Russia and former USSR
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Occurrences in Europe
(from Euro+Med Checklist till 2024)
Country codes
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[Ab(A) nAE(G) nAg nAl nAu(A) Az aAz(F S) nBe(B) nBl Bl(I M) nBr nBu nBy nCa Ca(L T) Cg nCo nCr nCs Ct nCy aDa nEg aEs aFe nGa(F) nGe aGg nGr aHb nHo nHs(G S) nHu nIJ nIr nIt Jo nJu aLa nLt nLu nMa Mk Mo aNo nPo nRf(C CS E NW S) aRf(N) nRm nSa nSi(M S) nSk aSl nSn nSr nSu Sy aTcs nTn nTu(A E) Uk(K U)]
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| Links & Further literature
(0 papers) |
Google Web |
Google Images |
Google Scholar |
Research Gate |
Wikipedia |
JSTOR |
GBIF |
Med Checklist |
Cat. of Life |
EoL |
IPNI |
World Flora Online |
Plants of the World Online |
Vienna Virt. Herb. |
RBGE Herbarium |
KEW Herbarium |
MNHN |
Garden Database |
IUCN |
TROPICOS |
Kindly Email if there are papers and publications about local
studies or information about this species to be included in the list above.
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Sales and Donations
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Sales of seeds of wild plant from Malta: Seeds of selected wild plant species may be available for academic studies, research purposes, or personal use. Please note that not all species can be supplied or exported. Availability is subject to seasonal seed production, stock levels, and applicable regulations, including Maltese legislation and CITES requirements where relevant. Protected and endemic species cannot be sold (at least without the relevant environmental permits).
How it works: First, submit a quotation request by completing the Online Quotation Form (link provided on the right side of this table). Once your request has been reviewed, you will receive confirmation regarding seed availability, export eligibility (where applicable), pricing, and any transport charges. Payments are accepted by Revolut, bank transfer (IBAN), or PayPal only; credit and debit card payments are not accepted.
Please note that local orders are currently not being accepted. Seek Maltese nurseries and NGOs for local orders.
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Online Quotation (Seeds)
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Atlas Flora Europaea
GBIF Distribution Map
WFO Distribution map
