Dehiscent fruits in the Thespesia populations of Mumbai - VG-JUL-10

[vip...@gmail.com]

Thespesia populnea is one of the most widespread and extensively propagated trees in & around Mumbai, both along the coast and inland. One of the key features of this tree, and one that is highlighted in all the descriptions of this species, is its indehiscent fruit. Its congener T. populneoides is known for its dehiscent fruit. 

In the last few years, I have often come across dehiscent fruits on many of these trees all over Mumbai & its environs. These dehiscent fruits are borne on short stalks (c. 3 cm in length). In a few instances, I have encountered indehiscent fruits borne on long stalks (c. 10 cm in length).

The Thespesia populations of this region also exhibit considerable variation in the leaf shape, especially the leaf base, which varies from deeply cordate to subtruncate. From what I've observed, fruit dehiscence is not confined to trees with a particular leaf shape, it occurs both in the cordate- as well as in the truncate-leaved trees. I have not come across the bronze-coppery foliage characteristic of T. populneoides in any of the trees here.

Have attached a paper on Thespesia populnea and its congener T. populneoides by Francis Raymond Fosberg & Marie-Hélène Sachet [1972]. In light of this paper, a large number of the Thespesia strands in Mumbai appear to intergrade between T. populnea and T. populneoides.

Some photographs of the dehiscent fruits and the variable leaf bases taken in North & in South Mumbai between January and April 2014 are attached herewith.

Would appreciate any comments and observations.

Best wishes, Viplav

[Ushadi Micromini]

just for this thread  as data

viplav you know it of course

this is paras piplo in gujarati i tink

usha di

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Usha di
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