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The avocado is an evolutionary anachronism

smithsonianmag.com

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Re: The avocado is an evolutionary anachronism

#31

Here's a way to view evolutionary theory: a plant that is extremely tasty becomes cultivated, and protected by the species that eats it. As a result, the plant prospers. This actually has a name - Mutualism. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mutualism_(biology) for example.

Obligatory mention of rye [1] and Vavilovian mimicry [2].

[1] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rye#History

[2] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vavilovian_mimicry

Re: The avocado is an evolutionary anachronism

#32
It's a very unique fruit, unlike most commercial fruits available in the west it's 85% fat, it's got 7 grams of fiber, and a single fruit has about 320 calories.

That is about the caloric equivalent of 3 medium-sized bananas. It's a great source of healthy fats, and very satiating due to the high fiber content.

Definitively something to be included in a healthy diet, but bear in mind that due to the high caloric content, if you eat a whole avocado with some toast that is going to give you the caloric equivalent of a whole meal.

So if you eat them every day in addition to your standard diet, it's going to add a lot of calories to your daily total. The suggestion is to eat them occasionally as guacamole making a meal out of it, or eat a smaller portion as a snack.

In their natural state, avocados are ripe about two weeks per year, so it's not something that we had the opportunity to eat a lot of in the past.

Definitively a healthy thing to add to the diet, I eat maybe one or so a week.

Re: The avocado is an evolutionary anachronism

#34

Here's a way to view evolutionary theory: a plant that is extremely tasty becomes cultivated, and protected by the species that eats it. As a result, the plant prospers. This actually has a name - Mutualism. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mutualism_(biology) for example.

But this falls down a little bit if you apply it to animals. I mean, chickens are tasty and all, and there are probably billions of them in the world right now... but do you call living in a cage with your beak cut off "prospering"? From a purely genetic propagation point of view they are prospering I guess... but at what cost?

I don't think evolution cares about anything really. Plenty of species live pretty miserable lives, and evolution can lead them to even more miserable lives.

Evolution is not a conscious being, it is not positive nor negative, it does not try to achieve anything, and particularly not happiness for anybody.

In a similar way, we don't need to protect the environment in the sake of nature. Nature does not care, evolution does not care. Humans are the ones who care. We are the ones worrying about other animals lives, preserving species and landscape, both for romantic and practical reasons.

A super foreign virus could come tomorrow and kill all complex life on earth. Would that be a disaster? For us yes, but in general life would follow its course anyway and evolve again. Nothing has a meaning except the one we are to give.

Re: The avocado is an evolutionary anachronism

#35

Here's a way to view evolutionary theory: a plant that is extremely tasty becomes cultivated, and protected by the species that eats it. As a result, the plant prospers. This actually has a name - Mutualism. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mutualism_(biology) for example.

But this falls down a little bit if you apply it to animals. I mean, chickens are tasty and all, and there are probably billions of them in the world right now... but do you call living in a cage with your beak cut off "prospering"? From a purely genetic propagation point of view they are prospering I guess... but at what cost?

chicken evolution might simply be biding it's time.

until one day when an avian virus spreads through chicken and wipes out humanity, leaving them to become the ruling species on this planet.

"the one who clucks last, clucks the loudest" (-- old chicken proverb)

Re: The avocado is an evolutionary anachronism

#36
An even better 'at the next party' factoid about avocados is that they're technically monoecious, but practically you need two plants to get good pollination.

Monoecious means they have both male and female flower parts on the same plant ... but interestingly with avocados both bits don't work at the same time.

There's two types of avocado trees, helpfully called type A and type B. Type A is functionally female first, and then (a day or two later) male. Type B is the other way around.

They're one of very few plants to work this way, though I don't imagine it would have confounded early practitioners of agriculture.

Re: The avocado is an evolutionary anachronism

#37
post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And couldn't a new world monkey simply carry the avocado somewhere else to eat it? Does it have to pass through the gut?

I had an avocado tree in the backyard growing up and the avocados would fall and grow new plants. The next avocado you eat, leave it in an inch of water and it will sprout in a couple weeks, splitting in half to extend roots and a small canopy. Had I not had to weed the backyard as a kid during avocado season, the plants would've kept growing from fallen avocados. They have these massive yolks that let them grow pret…

We took an avocado seed left over from one from the fridge, and grew it. It's now about 1.5m tall.

Re: The avocado is an evolutionary anachronism

#40

Thats a common myth, birds eat and spread avocado seeds https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resplendent_quetzal#Feeding

Guard: Where'd you get the avocados?

King Arthur: We found them.

Guard: Found them? In Mercia? The avocado's tropical!

King Arthur: What do you mean?

Guard: Well this is a temperate zone!

King Arthur: The resplendent quetzal may fly south with the sun, or the house marten or the plover may seek warmer climes in winter, yet these are not strangers to our land!

Guard: Are you suggesting avocados migrate?

King Arthur: Not at all! They could be carried.

Guard: What? A resplendent quetzal carrying an avocado?

King Arthur: It could grip it by the husk!

Guard: It's not a question of where he grips it! It's a simple question of weight ratios! A five ounce bird could not carry a one pound avocado!

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