Common Thorn-Apple vs Jimsonweed

Datura stramonium compared with Datura metel

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Common Thorn-Apple	Jimsonweed
Kingdom same	Plantae (Plants)	Plantae (Plants)
Phylum same	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)
Class same	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)
Order same	Solanales (Solanales)	Solanales (Solanales)
Family same	Solanaceae	Solanaceae
Genus same	Datura	Datura
Species	Datura stramonium	Datura metel

Evolutionary Relationship

Common Thorn-Apple and Jimsonweed share a common ancestor at the Genus level: Datura.

Conservation Status

Common Thorn-Apple

NE — Not Evaluated

Jimsonweed

NE — Not Evaluated

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Common Thorn-Apple	Jimsonweed
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Common Thorn-Apple

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial habitats from tropical forests to temperate regions.

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (26 countries), Asia (20 countries), Europe (35 countries), North America (9 countries), Oceania and the Pacific (6 countries), and South America (7 countries).

Jimsonweed

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial habitats from tropical forests to temperate regions.

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (12 countries), Asia (10 countries), Europe (4 countries), North America (5 countries), Oceania and the Pacific (Marshall Islands), and South America (Brazil, Colombia).

Common Thorn-Apple

<em>Datura stramonium</em>, the common thorn apple or jimsonweed, is an annual herbaceous plant in the family Solanaceae, believed to be native to Central America or southern North America but now cosmopolitan, occurring in over 90 countries across temperate and tropical regions worldwide. It is Not Evaluated on the IUCN Red List as a widespread weed. The plant grows in disturbed soils, waste ground, roadsides, agricultural fields, and gardens. It bears large, lobed leaves with an unpleasant odor, distinctive white to pale violet trumpet-shaped flowers, and spiny seed capsules. All parts of <em>Datura stramonium</em> are highly toxic, containing tropane alkaloids including scopolamine, hyoscyamine, and atropine, which can cause severe poisoning in humans and livestock. Despite its toxicity, it has a long history of medicinal and ritual use across many cultures. The species is considered an invasive weed in many agricultural contexts. Biological traits such as seed output per plant, precise lifespan, and biomass data remain poorly documented in standardized global assessments.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 26 countries:

🇦🇴 Angola 🇧🇷 Brazil 🇨🇦 Canada 🇨🇳 China 🇨🇴 Colombia 🇰🇲 Comoros 🇨🇩 Congo (DRC) 🇭🇷 Croatia 🇬🇳 Guinea 🇮🇳 India 🇰🇪 Kenya 🇱🇦 Laos 🇲🇼 Malawi 🇲🇹 Malta 🇲🇿 Mozambique 🇳🇵 Nepal 🇰🇵 North Korea 🇸🇹 Sao Tome and Principe 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia 🇸🇨 Seychelles 🇿🇦 South Africa 🇸🇪 Sweden 🇹🇼 Taiwan 🇹🇷 Turkey 🇺🇸 United States 🇿🇲 Zambia