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Explosive fossil fruit found buried beneath ancient Indian lava flows

JacksinPA

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Just before the closing scenes of the Cretaceous Period, India was a rogue subcontinent on a collision course with Asia. Before the two landmasses merged, however, India rafted over a 'hot spot' within the Earth's crust, triggering one of the largest volcanic eruptions in Earth's history, which likely contributed to the extinction of the dinosaurs. In a recent study, scientists excavating the fossilized remains of plant material wedged between layers of volcanic rock describe a new plant species based on the presence of distinctive fruit capsules that likely exploded to disperse their seeds.
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Interesting but I would guess that this mechanism for seed dispersal was still around in the plant kingdom
 

Just before the closing scenes of the Cretaceous Period, India was a rogue subcontinent on a collision course with Asia. Before the two landmasses merged, however, India rafted over a 'hot spot' within the Earth's crust, triggering one of the largest volcanic eruptions in Earth's history, which likely contributed to the extinction of the dinosaurs. In a recent study, scientists excavating the fossilized remains of plant material wedged between layers of volcanic rock describe a new plant species based on the presence of distinctive fruit capsules that likely exploded to disperse their seeds.
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Interesting but I would guess that this mechanism for seed dispersal was still around in the plant kingdom

One of my gardening catalogs has a 'squirting cucumber'. I haven't seen one in action but it sounds pretty much the same.
 
Interesting article, and information about the antiquity of the spurge family.

Exploding seed capsules exist today among certain plants as a means of propagation — the common bedding plant impatiens being one.

Evidently the euphorbia characias, a spurge, also has a successful strategy for propagation as the plant is trying to spread across my yard. I haven’t noticed exploding seeds as I have with impatiens.

 
One of my gardening catalogs has a 'squirting cucumber'. I haven't seen one in action but it sounds pretty much the same.

squirting cucumber​


I'd have to see the original paper to find out how the fossil guys classified it. There may be a related parent but sometimes I've seen the end product the same in unrelated plants meaning they evolved along different paths. For example, I have 2 unrelated plant species in my yard but they both produce blue flowers based on heavy metals from the soil.
 

squirting cucumber​


I'd have to see the original paper to find out how the fossil guys classified it. There may be a related parent but sometimes I've seen the end product the same in unrelated plants meaning they evolved along different paths. For example, I have 2 unrelated plant species in my yard but they both produce blue flowers based on heavy metals from the soil.

Thanks, that's pretty cool.
 
Interesting article, and information about the antiquity of the spurge family.

Exploding seed capsules exist today among certain plants as a means of propagation — the common bedding plant impatiens being one.

Evidently the euphorbia characias, a spurge, also has a successful strategy for propagation as the plant is trying to spread across my yard. I haven’t noticed exploding seeds as I have with impatiens.

Hura crepitans



Hura crepitans, the sandbox tree,[2] also known as possumwood and jabillo, is an evergreen tree of the spurge family (Euphorbiaceae), native to tropical regions of North and South America including the Amazon rainforest. It is also present in parts of Tanzania, where it is considered an invasive species.[3] It can be recognized by its smooth brown bark covered in many dark, pointed spines which have led to its being nicknamed monkey no-climb. Because its fruit explodes when ripe, it has also received the colloquial nickname the dynamite tree.[4]
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Thanks for the spurge reference. That family is huge, mainly desert-area succulents. Bound to be many more exploding fruit examples.
 
How plants have evolved their means of propagation is an interesting topic, speaking to the habitats in which they arose — exploding, hitch-a-ride, lay-down-and-root, carried-by-the-wind, etc.
 

Just before the closing scenes of the Cretaceous Period, India was a rogue subcontinent on a collision course with Asia. Before the two landmasses merged, however, India rafted over a 'hot spot' within the Earth's crust, triggering one of the largest volcanic eruptions in Earth's history, which likely contributed to the extinction of the dinosaurs. In a recent study, scientists excavating the fossilized remains of plant material wedged between layers of volcanic rock describe a new plant species based on the presence of distinctive fruit capsules that likely exploded to disperse their seeds.
============================

Interesting but I would guess that this mechanism for seed dispersal was still around in the plant kingdom
WHAT! The dinosaurs didn't die off due to an asteroid or meteor extinction event? We've been lied to by scientists all these years? Science isn't settled? WOW! I guess evolution certainly isn't settle either.

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