Ulat-Kanta / Devils'claw
Martynia annua
Also known as Tiger Claw, Snake's Head
- Habit
- Undershrub
- Found in India
- Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Gujarat & more
- Flowering
- Throughout the year
How to identify Ulat-Kanta
Identify Ulat-Kanta by combining habit, leaf characters, flower or fruit details, location, and its family pattern. Do not rely on one feature alone.
- Look for a undershrub habit.
- Check the distinctive field mark: Curved hooked claw-like fruit that catches on animal fur (devil's claw).
- Confirm leaf arrangement: Opposite.
- Confirm leaf shape: Ovate.
- In season, compare flowering and fruiting time: Throughout the year.
- In India, compare location records such as Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh and nearby regions.
- Confirm it sits within the Pedaliaceae family pattern, then compare close relatives before deciding it is Ulat-Kanta.
Plant Details
- Scientific name
- Martynia annua
- Genus
- Martynia
- Family
- Pedaliaceae
- Habit
- Undershrub
- Habitat
- Along road sides and as weed of wastelands
- Habitat type
- Wasteland
- Native to
- Central America, Mexico
- Distribution
- Tropical & sub-tropical America, Mexico, Pakistan, Nepal, India, Myanmar
- Found in India
- Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Telangana, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Odisha, Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, West Bengal, Haryana, Jammu & Kashmir, Jharkhand, Kerala
- Flowering & fruiting
- Throughout the year
- Conservation status
- Not Evaluated (NE)
Leaf characters
- Leaf arrangement
- OppositerecordedTwo leaves arise from the stem at the same point, facing each other.“The leaves are opposite, and have red petioles.” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Leaf shape
- OvaterecordedEgg-shaped, broader near the base.“Martynia is an erect, somewhat shrubby annual plant about 1 metre (3.3 ft) tall, covered with glandular hairs, and has ovate, mucilaginous leaves 8–20 centimetres (3.1–7.9 in) wide” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
Characters marked “recorded” are for Ulat-Kanta itself; the rest are typical of the Pedaliaceae family.
Local Names
- Hindi
- उलट-कांटा Ulat-kanta, बाघनख Baghnakh,उलट कांटा ulata kanta
- Bengali
- বাঘনখ
- Tamil
- Puli - Nagam, புலிநகம்
- Telugu
- గరుడ ముక్కు, మార్టీనియా
- Kannada
- ಹುಲಿಯುಗುರು Huliyuguru, ಗರುಡಮೂಗು Garuda moogu
- Malayalam
- Puli - Nakham, പുലിനഖം
- Marathi
- Vinchu, विंचवी
About Ulat-Kanta
Devils'claw (Martynia annua) is a low shrub in the Pedaliaceae family. In India it has been recorded in Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Gujarat and 17 other states. It grows in along road sides and as weed of wastelands. It flowers and fruits through much of the year.
Uses
In practice it is long used in traditional medicine. Those medicinal uses are traditional attributions, not medical advice.
Pedaliaceae
Pedalium Or Sesame Family
Ulat-Kanta belongs to the Pedaliaceae family.
The illustration represents the family — not necessarily this exact species.
Explore the Pedaliaceae familySnap it. Know it.
Point your camera at Ulat-Kanta or any plant and SASYA identifies it instantly — on-device, offline, and private.
Common plant problems
If you are starting from symptoms instead of a diagnosis, use the plant disease symptom checker to narrow the cause before treating.
All plant problem & care guides