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Aril
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{{Short description|Specialized outgrowth that covers a seed}} {{for multi|the Etruscan deity|Atlas (mythology)#Other|the Malaysian entertainer|Aril (entertainer)}} {{distinguish|text=[[aryl]], a type of organic chemical radical}} {{More citations needed|date=January 2008}} [[File:Mace of nutmeg - ml-Jathi.jpg|thumb|right|An aril that surrounds the [[nutmeg seed]] is used as a [[spice]] called [[mace (spice)|mace]]]] [[File:ARS Litchi chinensis.jpg|thumb|right|The edible white aril of ''[[Litchi chinensis]]'' is sometimes called an arillode or false aril. It grows partly from the [[Ovule|funiculus]] and partly from the [[integument]] of the seed.<ref>{{citation |author1=Banerji, I. |author2=Chaudhuri, K.L. |year=1944 |title=A contribution to the life history of ''Litchi chinensis'' Sonn. |journal=Proceedings of the Indian Academy of Sciences, Section B |volume=19 |issue=2 |pages=19–27|doi=10.1007/BF03049502 |s2cid=82241185 }}</ref>]] An '''aril''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|æ|r|ɪ|l}}), also called '''arillus''', is a specialized outgrowth from a [[seed]] that partly or completely covers the seed. An '''arillode''', or '''false aril''', is sometimes distinguished: whereas an aril grows from the attachment point of the seed to the [[ovary (botany)|ovary]] (from the [[Ovule|funiculus]] or ''[[Hilum (biology)|hilum]]''), an arillode forms from a different point on the seed coat.<ref>{{citation |author1=Beentje, H. |author2=Williamson, J. |year=2010 |title=The Kew Plant Glossary: an Illustrated Dictionary of Plant Terms |publisher=Kew Publishing |location=[[Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew]]}}</ref> The term "aril" is sometimes applied to any fleshy appendage of the seed in [[flowering plant]]s, such as the [[mace (spice)|mace]] of the [[nutmeg]] seed.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Endress, P.K. |year=1973 |title=Arils And Aril-Like Structures In Woody Ranales |journal=[[New Phytologist]] |volume=72 |issue=5 |pages=1159–1171 |doi=10.1111/j.1469-8137.1973.tb02092.x|doi-access=free |bibcode=1973NewPh..72.1159E }}</ref> Arils and arillodes are often edible enticements that encourage animals to transport the seed, thereby assisting in seed dispersal.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IvEOb0HKyoAC&q=aril+&pg=PA218|title=Fruit and Seed Production|isbn=9780521373500|last1=Marshall|first1=C.|date=1992-04-30|publisher=Cambridge University Press }}</ref> '''Pseudarils''' are aril-like structures commonly found on the [[Pyrena|pyrenes]] of [[Burseraceae]] species that develop from the [[mesocarp]] of the ovary.<ref>{{Cite journal | doi = 10.1093/aobpla/pls027| pmid = 23115709| title = The fruit of Bursera: Structure, maturation and parthenocarpy| journal = [[AoB Plants]]| volume = 2012| pages = pls027| year = 2012| last1 = Ramos-Ordonez | first1 = M. F.| last2 = Arizmendi | first2 = M. D. C. | last3 = Marquez-Guzman | first3 = J.| pmc = 3484315}}</ref> The fleshy, edible pericarp splits neatly in two halves, then falling away or being eaten to reveal a brightly coloured pseudaril around the black seed. The aril may create a [[fruit]]-like structure, called (among other names) a ''[[accessory fruit|false fruit]]''. False fruit are found in numerous [[Angiosperm]] taxa. The edible false fruit of the [[longan]], [[lychee]] and [[ackee]] fruits are highly developed arils surrounding the seed rather than a [[pericarp]] layer. Such arils are also found in a few species of [[gymnosperm]]s, notably the [[Taxus|yews]] and related [[Pinophyta|conifers]] such as the [[Prumnopitys andina|lleuque]] and the [[Dacrycarpus dacrydioides|kahikatea]]. Instead of the [[wood]]y [[Conifer cone|cone]] typical of most gymnosperms, the reproductive structure of the yew consists of a single seed that becomes surrounded by a fleshy, cup-like covering. This covering is derived from a highly modified cone scale. ==Development in ''Taxus''== [[File:Taxus baccata MHNT.jpg|left|250px|thumb|{{nowrap|The fleshy aril that surrounds each seed in}} the [[Taxus baccata|yew]] is a highly modified seed cone scale]] In European yew plants (''[[Taxus baccata]]''), the aril starts out as a small, green band at the base of the seed, then turns brown to red as it enlarges and surrounds the seed, eventually becoming fleshy and scarlet in color at maturity. The aril is attractive to fruit-eating [[bird]]s and is non-toxic. All other parts of the yew are toxic, including the seed housed inside the aril. If the seed is crushed, breaks or splits in the stomach of a human, bird or another animal, it will result in poisoning. Birds digest the fleshy aril as a food source, and pass the seeds out in their droppings, promoting [[Dispersal vector|dispersal]] of the seeds. ==In ''Dacrycarpus dacrydioides''== The kahikatea tree, ''[[Dacrycarpus dacrydioides]]'', is native to [[New Zealand]]. In pre-European times the aril of the kahikatea was a food source for [[Māori people|Māori]]. The washed arils were called {{lang|mi|koroi}} and were eaten raw.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.conifers.org/po/Dacrycarpus_dacrydioides.php |title=''Dacrycarpus dacrydioides'' (kahikatea) description |work=conifers.org |year=2011 |quote=The small fruit ({{lang|mi|koroi}}) are superabundant and highly nutritious. The birds ate them and flocked for miles to do so. |access-date=10 September 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://web.auckland.ac.nz/uoa/science/about/departments/sbs/newzealandplants/maoriuses/food/conifers/kahikatea-dacrycarpus.cfm |title=Kahikatea, Dacrycarpus |work=web.auckland.ac.nz |year=2011 |quote=The juicy, swollen, red stalk which holds the seed is known as {{lang|mi|koroi}}. |access-date=10 September 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120112114227/http://web.auckland.ac.nz/uoa/science/about/departments/sbs/newzealandplants/maoriuses/food/conifers/kahikatea-dacrycarpus.cfm |archive-date=12 January 2012 }}</ref> {{-}} ==See also== * [[Elaiosome]], fleshy structures attached to the seeds of many plant species * [[Galbulus]], a fleshy cone borne chiefly by junipers and cypresses * [[Sarcotesta]], a fleshy epidermal layer of a seed coat, as in pomegranate ==References== {{Reflist}} ==Further reading== * Anderson, E. & Owens, J. N. (2003). Analysing the reproductive biology of Taxus: should it be included in Coniferales? ''Acta Hort.'' 615: 233–234. [[Category:Plant morphology]] [[Category:Plant anatomy]] [[Category:Conifers]]
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