Roemeria sicula, the rough poppy or round pricklyhead poppy, is a widespread species of flowering plant in the poppy family. It is native to the Mediterranean region, and western Asia as far as the western Himalayas, and has been introduced to much of the rest of Europe, South Africa, all of Australia, some US states, Chile and Argentina. It is a minor weed of cereal crops, and its range is expected to greatly expand due to climate change.
Taxonomy In 1753 Carl Linnaeus named a species Papaver hybridum, but though not identical to Roemeria sicula, it is regarded as one of its synonyms. The first description identical to the present species was published by the botanist Giovanni Gussone in 1844 with the name Papaver siculum. However, it was regarded as a subspecies or variety of Papaver hybridum by some botanists as late as 2007. More recently it has been moved to the genus Roemeria by Gabriele Galasso, Enrico Augusto Banfi, Llorenç Sáez, and Fabrizio Bartolucci. Though Roemeria sicula is listed as the accepted name in Plants of the World Online and World Plants, it is very frequently listed as Papaver hybridum by sources such as the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, the Flora of North America, and the Flora of Australia.
Following the species concept in POWO, it has synonyms.
Table of synonyms Name Year Rank Notes Cerastites hybridus 1821 species = het. Papaver apulum var. gracillimum 1909 variety = het. Papaver argemone var. hybridum 1887 variety = het. Papaver argemone f. siculum 1887 form ≡ hom. Papaver heterotricum 1887 species = het. Papaver hispidum 1779 species = het., nom. superfl. Papaver hispidum var. ambiguum 1893 variety = het. Papaver hybridum 1753 species = het. Papaver hybridum var. dissectum 1893 variety = het. Papaver hybridum var. lanuginosum 1909 variety = het. Papaver hybridum f. latifolium 1939 form = het. Papaver hybridum var. pinnatifidum 1893 variety = het. Papaver hybridum subsp. siculum 1882 subspecies ≡ hom. Papaver hybridum var. siculum 2007 variety ≡ hom. Papaver hybridum var. tenuifolium 1903 variety = het. Papaver siculum 1844 species ≡ hom. Roemeria hispida 2017 species = het. Notes: ≡ homotypic synonym ; = heterotypic synonym
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