''Pyrus glabra'', (, referring to the seeds), is a species
wild pear Wild pear may refer to:
* European pear, ''Pyrus communis
''Pyrus communis'', the common pear, is a species of pear native plant, native to central and eastern Europe, and western Asia.
It is one of the most important fruits of temperate region ...
native to Iran.
Preferring to grow in the
Zagros Mountains
The Zagros Mountains are a mountain range in Iran, northern Iraq, and southeastern Turkey. The mountain range has a total length of . The Zagros range begins in northwestern Iran and roughly follows Iran's western border while covering much of s ...
at about 2000m above sea level, it is a small, spiny tree, typically 4.6m tall, reaching 7.8m. The plant was said to exude a sweet substance called
manna
Manna (, ; ), sometimes or archaically spelled Mahna or Mana, is described in the Bible and the Quran as an edible substance that God in Abrahamic religions, God bestowed upon the Israelites while they were wandering the desert during the 40-year ...
of
Luristan
Lorestan province () is one of the Provinces of Iran, 31 provinces of Iran. Its capital is the city of Khorramabad.
Lorestan is in the Western Iran, western part of the country in the Zagros Mountains and covers an area of 28,392 km2. In ...
, which was collected by locals and consumed. Its fruit are heavy with tannins and very sour, but are still gathered in the wild for the vegetable oil in the seeds, which are larger than typical pear seeds. The oil keeps for a long time and is high in
omega-6 fatty acid
Omega−6 fatty acids (also referred to as ω−6 fatty acids or ''n''−6 fatty acids) are a family of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) that share a final carbon-carbon double bond in the ''n''−6 position, that is, the sixth bond, counti ...
s.
References
glabra
Endemic flora of Iran
Plants described in 1846
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