''Fragaria chiloensis'', the beach strawberry, Chilean strawberry, or coastal strawberry, is one of two species of wild strawberry that were hybridized to create the modern

garden strawberry The garden strawberry (or simply strawberry; ''Fragaria × ananassa'') is a widely grown hybrid species of the genus ''Fragaria'', collectively known as the strawberries, which are cultivated worldwide for their fruit. The fruit is widely ap ...

(''F. × ananassa''). It is native to the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the contin ...

coasts of

North North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating direction or geography. Etymology The word ''north ...

and

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the sout ...

Description

It is an

evergreen In botany, an evergreen is a plant which has foliage that remains green and functional through more than one growing season. This also pertains to plants that retain their foliage only in warm climates, and contrasts with deciduous plants, whic ...

plant growing to 15–30 centimetres (6–12 inches) tall. The relatively thick leaves are glossy green and trifoliate, each leaflet around 5 cm (2 in) long. The

flower A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechani ...

s are white, produced in spring and early summer. The

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particu ...

, a strawberry, is edible, red on the surface and white inside.

Genetics

All strawberries have a base haploid count of 7

chromosomes A chromosome is a long DNA molecule with part or all of the genetic material of an organism. In most chromosomes the very long thin DNA fibers are coated with packaging proteins; in eukaryotic cells the most important of these proteins are ...

. ''F. chiloensis'' is

octoploid Polyploidy is a condition in which the cells of an organism have more than one pair of ( homologous) chromosomes. Most species whose cells have nuclei ( eukaryotes) are diploid, meaning they have two sets of chromosomes, where each set contain ...

, having eight sets of these chromosomes for a total of 56. These eight genomes pair as four distinct sets, of two different types, with little or no pairing between sets. The genome composition of the octoploid strawberry species has generally been indicated as AAA'A'BBB'B'. The genomes were likely contributed by diploid ancestors related to '' F. vesca'' or similar species, while the genomes seem to descend from a close relative of '' F. iinumae''. The exact process of hybridization and speciation which resulted in the octoploid species is still unknown, but it appears that the genome compositions of both ''F. chiloensis'' and '' F. virginiana'' (and by extension the cultivated octoploid strawberry as well) are identical.

Subspecies

Starr 041006-0321 Fragaria chiloensis subsp

There are a number of subspecies and forms: * ''Fragaria chiloensis'' subsp. ''chiloensis'' forma ''chiloensis'' * ''Fragaria chiloensis'' subsp. ''chiloensis'' forma ''patagonica'' (

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

) * ''Fragaria chiloensis'' subsp. ''lucida'' (E. Vilm. ex Gay) Staudt (coast of

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

Oregon Oregon () is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of its eastern boundary with Idaho. T ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

) * ''Fragaria chiloensis'' subsp. ''pacifica'' Staudt (coast of

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S. ...

, British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, California) * ''Fragaria chiloensis'' subsp. ''sandwicensis'' (

Decne. Joseph Decaisne (7 March 1807 – 8 January 1882) was a French botanist and agronomist. He became an ''aide-naturaliste'' to Adrien-Henri de Jussieu (1797-1853), who served as the chair of rural botany. It was during this time that he began to stu ...

) Staudt – ''ʻŌhelo papa'' (

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state ...

)

Distribution and habitat

The plant's natural range is the

coasts of

and

, and also

, where it grows mostly on sand beaches above the tidal zone in temperate to warm-temperate regions.

Migratory bird Bird migration is the regular seasonal movement, often north and south along a flyway, between breeding and wintering grounds. Many species of bird migrate. Migration carries high costs in predation and mortality, including from hunting b ...

s are thought to have dispersed ''F. chiloensis'' from the Pacific coast of North America to the mountains of Hawaii,

, and

Amédée-François Frézier Amédée-François Frézier (1682 – October 26, 1773) was a French military engineer, mathematician, spy, and explorer who is best remembered for bringing back five specimens of '' Fragaria chiloensis'', the beach strawberry, from an assignment ...

(1682–1773) was the first to bring back specimens of the species to the Old World.

Ecology

Chaetosiphon fragaefolii ''Chaetosiphon fragaefolii'', the strawberry aphid, is a bug species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the lar ...

'', the strawberry aphid, is a bug species found feed on ''F. chiloensis'' in Chile. It is a vector of the strawberry mild yellow-edge virus.

Uses

Its fruit is sold as a local delicacy in some South American produce markets.

References

External links

* * *
Jepson Manual Treatment – ''Fragaria chiloensis''
* {{Taxonbar, from=Q149467 chiloensis Berries Flora of the West Coast of the United States Flora of Alaska Flora of Argentina Flora of British Columbia Flora of southern Chile Flora of Hawaii Garden plants of North America Garden plants of South America Groundcovers Taxa named by Philip Miller Flora without expected TNC conservation status