About Trichosanthes cucumeroides (Ser.) Maxim. ex Franch. & Sav.
Trichosanthes cucumeroides (Ser.) Maxim. ex Franch. & Sav., also referred to as Trichosanthes pilosa, is a species of flowering plant in the Cucurbitaceae family. This tropical or semitropical vine produces edible fruit. Its native range spans Japan, Taiwan, India, Malaysia, Vietnam, the Philippines, China (specifically Guangdong, Guangxi, Hainan, Hunan, Jiangxi, Sichuan, Xizang (Tibet), and Zhejiang), other areas of southeast Asia, and Australia. In English, it is commonly called Japanese snake gourd. This species has very similar vegetative characteristics to the more widely distributed common snake gourd, Trichosanthes cucumerina. The flowers and leaves of the two species are also very alike, but the fruit of Japanese snake gourd is round to egg-shaped, measuring about 7 cm long, and does not have the elongated snake-like shape of the common snake gourd's fruit.
