Argemone munita is a species of prickly poppy known by the common names flatbud prickly poppy and chicalote. "Munita" means "armed", in reference to the many long prickles. This flower is native to California, where it is widespread throughout the western part of the state and its eastern deserts, on slopes to 10,000 feet, and along roadsides. Its range also extends into Baja California, Arizona, and Nevada. This poppy bears its flowers on erect, spiny stems which can exceed a meter in height. The sap is yellow. The blue-green or mint-green, lobed leaves are also very prickly. The white poppy blooms usually have six crinkly petals, each up to 4 centimeters long, and three sepals. The center of the flower is surrounded by a dense ring of up to 250 small yellow or orange stamens bearing the pollen. The flowers are often compared to sunny-side-up eggs, with the dark pistil in the center as a dot of pepper. The fruits are spiny white capsules 3 to 5 centimeters long, each containing many small seeds. The leaves and seeds contain alkaloids which are probably toxic. crinkly white petals many stamens yellow sap, on capsule plant backlit, prickly leaves return bloom after fire
No narrative description available for this taxon yet.
Compounds documented for Argemone munita across natural-product and food-composition databases — not just the ~150 nutrients on a classic label ("nutritional dark matter").
Compound class profile3 classes
Isoquinoline alkaloids $ Protopine alkaloids2
Friedelane triterpenoids2
Protopine alkaloids1
Documented compounds9 total
Compound
Class
Amount
Source
20Alpha-Hydroxytingenone
present
NPASS
alpha-Allocryptopine
present
LOTUS
Muramine
present
LOTUS
Pristimerin
present
NPASS
Protopine
present
LOTUS
Salaspermic Acid
present
NPASS
Tingenone
present
NPASS
WQWVVEFJOYBRTQ-DDOYSYFBSA-N
present
NPASS
YVLKHYOFENMOAK-UMTXDNHDSA-N
present
NPASS
05DNA & barcoding4 specimens
A DNA barcode is a short, standardised stretch of genes that works like a fingerprint — enough to tell one species from another. Below is the molecular trace Argemone munita has left across the world's sequence archives.
At a glance
DNA specimens4
Marker genes5
GenBank sequences8
eDNA detections2
Countries1
The DNA barcodea real sequence read deposited for this species
★ the standard DNA barcode for this group — the short region actually read to tell this species apart. The rest are extra genes sequenced along the way.
★matK1★rbcL1★rbcLa★ITS6★ITS2
plant barcodefungal barcode
06Genome at a glanceCCDB
The complete instruction manualArgemone munita carries — its genome. We read it from three angles — how big it is, how the DNA is packed into chromosomes, and how completely it has been sequenced — and explain how to read each value as you go.
Chromosomes & ploidyhow the DNA is packaged
2n is the full chromosome count in a normal body cell; n is a gamete (egg or sperm), which carries half. Ploidy is how many complete chromosome sets each cell holds — 2× (diploid) is typical for animals, while higher levels (polyploidy) are common in plants. Click any value below to see the underlying records and sources.
Human sightings and records, or camera-trap / sensor detections — someone (or a device) saw or captured the species in the wild.
Coordinate accuracy90% within 1 km
≤100 m 1 341≤1 km 175≤10 km 117>10 km 56
1 689 georeferenced · 767 without coordinates
Open the mapobservation + sensor2 456
Museum / Voucheredphysical evidence
Backed by a physical specimen — a herbarium sheet, sample or voucher held in a collection. “Vouchered” means supported by material evidence, not just an observation.
Coordinate accuracy67% within 1 km
≤100 m 61≤1 km 133≤10 km 86>10 km 10
290 georeferenced · 413 without coordinates
Open the institutions mapphysical evidence703
Wildobservation + sensor
Human sightings and records, or camera-trap / sensor detections — someone (or a device) saw or captured the species in the wild.
10Collections & institutions
Holding institutions43 of 59 geolocated
Institutions and collections holding physical, vouchered specimens of this species — click a row to fly to it on the map.
Institution
Specimens
San Diego, US
139
Claremont, US
134
Santa Barbara, US
46
Provo, US
42
Davis, US
19
University of Stellenboschlocation not on record
16
Logan, US
16
CASlocation not on record
16
US
14
Riverside, US
13
Flagstaff, US
11
Orem, US
11
San Luis Obispo, US
10
DOI/NPS, Little Rock Central High School National Historic Sitelocation not on record
10
Phoenix, US
10
Eastern Nevada Landscape Coalitionlocation not on record
10
Canadian Department of Agriculturelocation not on record
9
ASUlocation not on record
9
Severin-McDaniel Insect Collectionlocation not on record
8
Bureau of Land Managementlocation not on record
8
Arcata, US
8
Los Angeles, US
7
San Bernardino, US
7
Northridge, US
7
Long Beach, US
7
Fullerton, US
6
Caldwell, US
5
San Francisco, US
5
Ensenada, MX
4
San Jose, US
4
Saint Louis, US
4
Irvine, US
3
US
3
Weber State Universitylocation not on record
3
La Paz, MX
2
Mexico City, MX
2
DOI/NPS, Colonial National Historical Parklocation not on record
2
Tlalnepantla, MX
2
McWane Science Centerlocation not on record
2
Mexico City, MX
2
Angwin, US
2
EL PASO, US
2
Chadron, US
1
WTUlocation not on record
1
Pittsburg, US
1
Austin, US
1
Whitehorse, CA
1
STNFlocation not on record
1
Wuzhou, CN
1
Pullman, US
1
Durango, MX
1
Arizona Western Collegelocation not on record
1
Henderson, US
1
San Diego Natural History Museum, Herbariumlocation not on record
1
Bronx, US
1
Santa Cruz, US
1
Pocatello, US
1
Durango, US
1
INFlocation not on record
1
59 institutions · 657 of 703 vouchered records shown · 46 without an institution code
09Environmental DNA2 detections
Where the DNA of Argemone munita was picked up in samples of water, soil or air — nobody saw the organism, only its DNA left behind. A trace is a clue that the species was near, not a confirmed sighting.
Signal
Detections DNA found2
Studies independent surveys1
Countries1
Signal confidence: weakweighed across independent studies, places & mapped detections
Where its DNA was found
0 of 2 detections have coordinates
Open the map1 country0
How strong is each trace?
DNA read depthRead counts were not reported for this species — the map shows presence only, not how strong each trace was.
Modelled climatemodelled
−15°Ctemperature across detection sites+40°C
Temperature median21.2 °C 21.2–21.2
Seasonal swing summer↔winter18.1 °C
Max temp (day)30.0 °C
Min temp (night)12.9 °C
Precipitation2.50 mm/mo
Air humidity37.6 %
Moisture balance-234 mm/mo
Vapour deficit1,583 Pa
Wind speed7.00 m/s
Cloud cover19.9 %
CHELSA 1981–2010, ~9 km grid, at location & month of 1 detection point · median with p10–p90 · reflects where sampling happened, not only the true niche
How to read this: each dot is one detection of this species' DNA in an environmental sample. The confidence meter weighs how many independent studies and places back up the signal — one detection in one study is a hint; many across several studies is solid. Records dated before 2008 (when eDNA methods began) are treated as likely mislabeled and left off the map.