Samara (fruit)

vine maple (Acer circinatum)
samara of Combretum zeyheri
Seeds of the tropical ash (Fraxinus uhdei)

A samara is an achene, a type of dry winged botanical fruit. The shape of a samara enables the wind to carry the seed farther from the parent tree, as it prevents the samara from simply dropping straight down. It employs a similar principle to an airfoil, causing it to twirl or flutter, falling slower than it otherwise would and spending more time in the air where the wind can move it. Some, like those of the maple, have the seed on the inside, while others, like those of the ash, have the seed on the outside.

References

  1. ↑ botanical fruit = seed with covering tissue, but not a fruit in ordinary speech.
  2. ↑ Fergus, Charles (2002). Trees of Pennsylvania and the Northeast. Stackpole Books. ISBN 9780811720922.
  3. ↑ Catalogues of Plants: no. 1. Arthur J.C; Coulter J.M. and Barnes C.R. 1881. Catalogue of the phaenogamous and vascular cryptogamous plants of Indiana.
  4. ↑ Transactions of the Royal Scottish Arboricultural Society. Douglas & Foulis. 1881.
  5. ↑ Alexander, David E.; Vogel, Steven (2004). Nature's Flyers: Birds, Insects, and the Biomechanics of Flight. JHU Press. ISBN 9780801880599.

Further reading