Talk:Avocado

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The idea with the ground sloths is just oft-recited speculation

... according to SciShow who posted a correction video on their earlier content about this (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jpcBgYYFS8o). They say there was never any actual data that backed up that claim but it was a speculation in an old scientific paper and got copied on and on... Maybe worth a look? 37.82.7.116 (talk) 37.82.7.116 (talk) 19:34, 22 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]

The statement attributing to Janzen and Barlow on the evolutionary anachronism for avocados having likely coevolved with "now-extinct megafauna in South America, notably giant ground sloths and the gomphothere genus of the elephant lineage", is widely accepted by taxonomists, as explained and sourced in the first two paragraphs of the Taxonomy section. No change is needed. Zefr (talk) 19:51, 22 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]

That is not quite correct, Zefr.

In this section, it is stated: In 1982, evolutionary biologist Daniel H. Janzen concluded that the avocado is an example of an "evolutionary anachronism", a fruit adapted for ecological relationship with now-extinct large mammals (such as giant ground sloths or gomphotheres), source is PMID 17790450. But in that paper avocado isn't even mentioned. Only giant ground sloths were shorty mentioned, but definitely not avocados.

As for Barlow, this is also confusing. She pointed out that Robert E. Cook, was citing Janzen and Martin: "Cook published an essay in 1982 in Natural History that described the avocado, Persea americana, as an ecological anachronism". But even she did not establish a relationship between giant ground sloths and avocados. And we don't know that Cook was referring to those slots. Do you have Cook's essay from 1982?

So it seems like someone simply connected thereafter avocados and those slots (acc. to SciShow in the 2000s, which must be Barlow's "The ghosts of evolution: nonsensical fruit, missing partners, and other ecological anachronisms").

What is not helping is the way this article makes a statement, even the page number of Barlow's book is missing (which is a strong sign that it was simply put as reference without having read anything from it). Also the other reference (Nigel-Wolstenholme, #31) is weak: The authors only speculate that "certainly Persea spp. have seeds and fruits with at least some of Janzen and Martin's (1982) megafaunal dispersal syndrome characteristics". But this is too weak to demonstrate that giant sloths were distributing avocado seeds. --Julius Senegal (talk) 20:29, 23 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]

It's always a fascinating inference about what animals may have been the dispersers. The 2023 Berdugo ref on genomics states "our data are consistent with long-distance dispersal mediated by big mammals such as the giant ground slots that inhabited the Americas during the Pleistocene." Your specific suggestions for clarification would be welcome. Zefr (talk) 21:22, 23 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]

I just did a search for sources disagreeing with the megafauna theory. It looks like the megafauna theory is still the scientific consensus. The SciShow video cites a conference proceeding titled Lestodon doesn't want your avocado toast: debunking the dietary myths of late Pleistocene sloths, which is the only academic source I can find about the alternative theory. Since there aren't any peer-reviewed articles (unless I'm missing one) about this theory, it doesn't look like it warrants inclusion in the Wikipedia article. Unless sources are published in the future. — Vigilant Cosmic Penguin 🐧 (talk | contribs) 00:15, 10 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]

"Mexican Avocado Dispute" listed at Redirects for discussion

The redirect Mexican Avocado Dispute has been listed at redirects for discussion to determine whether its use and function meets the redirect guidelines. Readers of this page are welcome to comment on this redirect at Wikipedia:Redirects for discussion/Log/2024 June 21 § Mexican Avocado Dispute until a consensus is reached. Marcocapelle (talk) 08:37, 21 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]

New Graph on Avocado trends over the years in USA (2015 - 2023)

This visualization provides an insight into the development of avocado sales in the United States between 2015 and 2023. The graph shows the amount of avocado units sold over the years in terms of volume, avocado types and price.

Sales are divided into two types of avocados, differentiated in the graph in terms of colour: conventional avocados and organic avocados. Conventional refers to avocados grown using agricultural methods that may include the use of pesticides and synthetic fertilisers. Organic refers to avocados grown with organic agricultural practices.

Robertaflo99 (talk) 09:41, 3 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

awkward?

"The modern avocado is thought to have estimated to have speciated " seems weird to me.Kdammers (talk) 19:43, 23 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]