Plants · La Saladita, Guerrero

Mexican Sour Gherkin

Melothria scabra

Spanish: Sandía de ratón

Mexican Sour Gherkin (Melothria scabra)
Photographed by karlos_osorio on iNaturalist · CC-BY-NC

Melothria scabra is a vine grown for its edible fruit. Fruit are about the size of grapes and taste like cucumbers with a tinge of sourness. Vernacular names include mouse melon, Mexican sour gherkin, cucamelon, Mexican miniature watermelon, Mexican sour cucumber and pepquinos. Most often recorded in Jul.

TaxonomyMagnoliopsida › Cucurbitales › Cucurbitaceae
Local records2 research-grade observations within about 50 km of La Saladita (the survey box also takes in Zihuatanejo, Ixtapa and Troncones)
Global records572 on iNaturalist
Recorded here2025 – 2025
Months recorded near La Saladita
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Recent local sightings

Interactive card with more photos, sounds and similar species Plants guide iNaturalist Wikipedia

Cite as: “Mexican Sour Gherkin (Melothria scabra) at La Saladita”, La Saladita Field Guide, lasaladita.com/species/melothria-scabra/, updated 2026-09-26. Observation counts and months come from iNaturalist research-grade records within about 50 km of 17.8375°N, 101.7606°W (the survey box also takes in Zihuatanejo, Ixtapa and Troncones); summary text from Wikipedia where present.