Solanum cerasiferum Dunal, Prodr.

Knapp, Sandra, Vorontsova, Maria S. & Prohens, Jaime, 2013, Wild Relatives of the Eggplant (Solanum melongena L.: Solanaceae): New Understanding of Species Names in a Complex Group, PLoS ONE 8 (2), pp. 1-12 : 7

3. Solanum cerasiferum Dunal, Prodr. [A.P. de Candolle] 13(1): 365. 1852.

Distribution. From Senegal to Cameroon, Sudan and Ethiopia; continental Africa north of the Equator; fallow land, scrubland, and woodland, 450–1200 m elevation.

Solanum cerasiferum is morphologically very similar to and partly sympatric with S. campylacanthum , from which it differs in its lobed leaves with attentuate bases and sparser pubescence. It has a more northern and western distribution than S. campylacanthum , with some populations with intermediate morphological character combinations known from the northern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. West African populations with a dense cover of trichomes also resemble sympatric populations of S. incanum . Individual specimens from the area of sympatry can be difficult to identify, but a careful examination of leaves (particularly the bases) will enable differentation (see Table 2 ). Solanum cerasiferum usually has several long-styled flowers and fruits per inflorescence, and generally exhibits weaker andromonoecy than other African eggplant relatives. It is not known if S. cerasiferum forms clonal populations as does S. campylacanthum .