Nagamalli Fruit - The Cannon Ball
Earlier I have posted the Cannon Ball tree & its beautiful flowers.
But the tree derived its name from the shape & size of its fruit.
Here is the Cannon ball:
Here is an account of the fruit from Wiki:
"The tree gets its common name from the large, spherical fruits it produces. The fruit falls from the tree and cracks open when it hits the ground when mature, often causing the sound of a small explosion. The fruit emits an unpleasant aroma when exposed to the air. Individual seeds within the "ball" are coated with hair, which is thought to protect the seed when it is ingested and may also help in the passage of the seed through the intestines. The cannonball tree and it's fruit are thought by some to be remnants of the last ice age, like the "hedge apple" or "osage orane" of north America. The fruit is thought to be an adaptation provided for the giant ground sloth, a long extinct species. Today instead of seeds being dispersed by the large extinct mammal, the fruit simply rots around the base of it's mother tree. Like coconut palms, the trees should not be planted near paths or near traffic-filled areas, as the heavy nut is known to fall without notice".
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