Dehiscent fruit
-
Title
Dehiscent fruit
-
Definition
Referring to fruits that open via an operculum (= lid like in a teapot) at maturity.
-
Notes
In Lecythidaceae, dehiscent fruits open by a circular opening (opercular opening) which is closed by a lid (operculum) which falls when the seeds are ripe. This kind of dehiscence is called circumscissile and woody, dehiscent fruits of neotropical Lecythidaceae are circumscissile capsules. One the opercula fall, the seeds are dispersed by animals (especially bats), gravity, wind, or water.
-
Related Terms
- *For more educational content, please visit The Hand Lens and explore our herbarium collections and the stories they tell.