A collaborative research effort by anthropologists and evolutionary biologists from the U.S., alongside a Smithsonian Institution colleague, has revealed evidence of avocado domestication dating back 7,500 years in present-day Honduras. The findings, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, stem from an analysis of over 1,700 fossilized avocados from a Honduran dig site.
Avocados, native to tropical evergreen trees in South and Central America and Mexico, have been cultivated globally. Their earliest known appearance dates back approximately 400,000 years in Mexico. Initially, their seeds were dispersed by megafauna, but their numbers dwindled following a megafauna extinction at the Pleistocene's end. Human intervention likely prevented their extinction.
The research team analyzed 1,725 fossilized avocado samples from the El Gigante rock shelter in Honduras. They successfully dated 56 samples, some as far back as 11,000 years. Observations indicated that the fruit's rind thickened and seed size increased over time, suggesting human-driven domestication. The team posits that domestication began with managing wild trees and progressed to planting seeds from preferred fruit.
Evidence indicates domestication commenced between 7,565 and 7,265 years ago, preceding the domestication of other crops like maize.
Source: Phys.org