Single Record

Participant Info

Species
Tribulus terrestris
Family
Zygophyllaceae
CommonName
puncturevine, caltrops, goat’s-head, devil’s eyelashes, tackweed
Presence
Yes
Status
exotic, noxious
EarliestDate
1879
LatestDate
2023
Ecosystem
basin, shrubland, foothill, ruderal, urban
Geobotanical
SSanjuans, NCristos
Counties
Alamosa, Rio Grande, Saguache
Passes
WildlifePreserves
Other Localities
Alamosa (town), Del Norte
Comments
In the Watershed puncturevine has been recorded from the Baca National Wildlife Refuge, from the town of Alamosa, and from the town of Del Norte, where city and land owner efforts to eradicate it have not been successful, 2014-2022. The Del Norte record would add Rio Grande to counties indicated in Ackerfield (2022) and BONAP (2022). Recent iNaturalist observations record it from the Shaw Creek rest area east of South Fork (Aug 2023, Rio Grande Co), the town of Alamosa (July 2023, Alamosa Co), and the Great Sand Dune NPP (Oct 2019, Alamosa Co). Tribulus terrestris is on Colorado's C list of "noxious weeds." It is present the entire length of the Rio Grande drainage, right down to the Gulf of Mexico. This exotic has been observed in nearly every state in the Union, with a preponderance of counties east of the Mississippi. It is especially notorious among California bicyclists. For more photographs and comment, click "yes' in the Annotation field below.