Prosopis castellanosii Burkart
Fabaceae
Mimosoideae
NOTE: Only one seed of Prosopis castellanosii was available for examination. Therefore, the description and images in this fact sheet may not be representative of this species’ seeds.
mesquite
Pods oblong, compressed, with 1 or more twists, straight or curving slightly, lomentoid, 3.5–8 cm long, 15–20 mm wide, ca. 4 mm thick. Stipitate, mucronate at apex, margins slightly undulate. Reddish-brown, with prominent, reticulate veins; seed chambers ca. 4–10. Endocarp segments subquadrate or broader than long; mesocarp thin, nearly dry. Seeds oriented longitudinally.
Seeds asymmetrically obovate to broadly oblong in outline, ca. 7.5–8.4 mm long, ca. 5–6 mm wide, ca. 2.5–2.7 mm thick, elliptic in cross section. Pleurogram arms nearly closed and extending to base. Lens a light-colored mound.
The lomentoid, oblong, flat pod is unique and diagnostic for the species.
Argentina
arid hills at 600–1300 m elevations, very isolated
Prosopis castellanosii is a spiny shrub, 0.6–1.5 m tall. An extreme xerophyte, it is quite localized and rare. The lomentoid pod breaks into one-seeded fruit segments.