Despite their diminute scale, desert winter annual seeds possess a diverse array of evolutionary features. Using a scanning electron microscope, we imaged seeds ranging in length from one centimeter to less than one milimeter to reveal their hidden complexities. We've been looking at these seeds for years, but many ecologically relevant traits had gone unnoticed by us until now. For instance, we knew that the hair on Daucus pusilus helps it disperse on animal fur, but we never noticed the tiny barbs at the end of each hair. Seeds in the Brassicaceae family have at thin layer of mucilage that helps then adhere to surfaces when wet, but we hadn't seen the geometric patterns unique to each species. We invite you to browse the images and discover more traits for yourself.
This project was conceived by Larry Venable and the seeds were imaged by Nick Roalofs under the guidance of Larry Venable and Ursula Basinger at the University of Arizona Spectroscopy and Imaging Facilities with funding from Tumamoc: People and Places. For permission to use these original images, please contact Larry Venable at venable@email.arizona.edu.
Amaranthaceae
Chenopodium fremontii
Apiaceae
Bowlesia incana
Daucus pusillus
Spermolepsis echinata
Yabea microcarpa
Asteraceae
Chaenactis stevioides
Eriophyllum lanosum
Evax multicaulis
Logfia arizonica
Logfia filaginoides
Logfia depressa
Monoptilon bellioides
Styolocline gnaphaloides
Stylocline micropoides
Boraginaceae
Amsinckia intermedia
Amsinckia tessellata
Cryptantha barbigera
Cryptantha nevadensis
Cryptantha angustifolia
Cryptantha micrantha
Cryptantha pterocarya
Eucrypta chrysanthemifolia
Eucrypta micrantha
Harpagonella palmeri
Lappula occidentalis var. cupulatum
Lappula occidentalis var. redowskii
Nama hispidum
Phacelia affinis
Phacelia arizonica
Pectocarya heterocarpa
Pectocarya platycarpa
Pectocarya recurvata
Phacelia crenulata
Phacelia distans
Plagiobothrys arizonica
Brassicaceae
Brassica tournefortii
Caulanthus lasiophyllus
Descurainia pinnata
Draba cuneifolia
Lepidium lasiocarpum
Lesquerella gordonii
Matthiola bicornis
Matthiola parviflora
Sisymbrium altissimum
Sisymbrium irio
Streptanthus carinatus
Thysanocarpus curvipes
Campanulaceae
Nemacladus glanduliferus
Caryophyllaceae
Herniaria hirsuta
Loeflingia squarrosa
Silene antirrhina
Crassulaceae
Crassula connata
Fabaceae
Astragalus nutalianus
Lotus tomentellus
Lotus humistratus
Lupinus concinnus
Lupinus sparsiflorus
Geraniaceae
Erodium cicutarium
Erodium texanum
Lamiaceae
Teucrium cubense
Linaceae
Linum lewisii
Loasaceae
Mentzelia albicaulis
Malvaceae
Eremalche exilis
Sphaeralcea coulteri
Onagraceae
Camissonia chamaenerioides
Chylisma claviformis
Eulobus Californicus
Oenothera primiveris
Orobanchaceae
Castilleja exserta
Papaveraceae
Corydalis aurea
Plantaginaceae
Plantago insularis
Plantago patagonica
Plantago rhodosperma
Poaceae
Festuca octoflora
Schismus barbatus
Polemoniaceae
Eriastrum diffusum
Gilia stellata
Linanthus bigelovii
Polygonaceae
Chorizanthe brevicornu
Eriogonum deflexum
Portulaceae
Cistanthe monandra
Primulaceae
Androsace occidentalis
Resedaceae
Oligomeris linifolia
Rubiaceae
Galium proliferum
Urticaceae
Parietaria hespera