Volume 47, Issue 3, January 2026, Pages 321–331
Idi Ounani Haoua1, Boubacar Laouge Zakari2, Dan Dano Na Inna Abdoul-Aziz3, Sanda Liman Andraous4, and Iro Dan Guimbo5
1 Département de Génie Rural, Eaux et Forêts, Faculté d’Agronomie, Université Abdou Moumouni, BP, 10960, Niamey, Niger
2 Département de Génie Rural, Eaux et Forêts, Faculté d’Agronomie, Université Abdou Moumouni, BP, 10960, Niamey, Niger
3 Département de Génie Rural, Eaux et Forêts, Faculté d’Agronomie, Université Abdou Moumouni, BP, 10960, Niamey, Niger
4 Département de Génie Rural, Eaux et Forêts, Faculté d’Agronomie, Université Abdou Moumouni, BP, 10960, Niamey, Niger
5 Département de Génie Rural et Eaux & Forêts, Faculté d’Agronomie, Université Abdou Moumouni de Niamey, B.P. 10960 Niamey, Niger
Original language: English
Copyright © 2026 ISSR Journals. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Variations in environmental factors induce morphological variations in the organs of plant species. This study was conducted to determine the morphological variations of leaves and fruits of Sclerocarya birrea along an aridity gradient North-South (Gaya - Dogondoucthi) to enable the selection of interesting ideotypes for the domestication of the species. For the methodology, thirty (30) individuals per site were chosen. The measurements were based on thirty (30) fruits and fifteen (15) leaves per individual. For fruits, the morphological descriptors chosen were length, width and weight and for leaves, the length of the leaf, length of the petiole, number of leaflets, length and width of the leaflet were considered. The obtained data were related and the averages were compared. The results showed significant differences between the zones for the weight of the fruit and the size of the leaflets. Fruit weights ranged from 16.03g to 14.75g, respectively, for the Sahelian and Sahelo-Sudanian zones. Leaflet lengths ranged from 2.48cm to 2.19cm, and leaf widths ranged from 1.37cm to 1.28cm, respectively, for the Sahelo-Sudanian and Sahelian zones. Significant and positive correlations were also observed between fruit and leaf parameters. Therefore, the existence of a water deficit adaptation strategy for Sclerocarya birrea, following the climatic gradient was noted. These results, although preliminary, confirm the possibility of using morphological traits to select interesting ideotypes for domestication of the species.
Author Keywords: Sclerocarya birrea, climatic gradient, adaptation, ideotypes, domestication.
Idi Ounani Haoua1, Boubacar Laouge Zakari2, Dan Dano Na Inna Abdoul-Aziz3, Sanda Liman Andraous4, and Iro Dan Guimbo5
1 Département de Génie Rural, Eaux et Forêts, Faculté d’Agronomie, Université Abdou Moumouni, BP, 10960, Niamey, Niger
2 Département de Génie Rural, Eaux et Forêts, Faculté d’Agronomie, Université Abdou Moumouni, BP, 10960, Niamey, Niger
3 Département de Génie Rural, Eaux et Forêts, Faculté d’Agronomie, Université Abdou Moumouni, BP, 10960, Niamey, Niger
4 Département de Génie Rural, Eaux et Forêts, Faculté d’Agronomie, Université Abdou Moumouni, BP, 10960, Niamey, Niger
5 Département de Génie Rural et Eaux & Forêts, Faculté d’Agronomie, Université Abdou Moumouni de Niamey, B.P. 10960 Niamey, Niger
Original language: English
Copyright © 2026 ISSR Journals. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Abstract
Variations in environmental factors induce morphological variations in the organs of plant species. This study was conducted to determine the morphological variations of leaves and fruits of Sclerocarya birrea along an aridity gradient North-South (Gaya - Dogondoucthi) to enable the selection of interesting ideotypes for the domestication of the species. For the methodology, thirty (30) individuals per site were chosen. The measurements were based on thirty (30) fruits and fifteen (15) leaves per individual. For fruits, the morphological descriptors chosen were length, width and weight and for leaves, the length of the leaf, length of the petiole, number of leaflets, length and width of the leaflet were considered. The obtained data were related and the averages were compared. The results showed significant differences between the zones for the weight of the fruit and the size of the leaflets. Fruit weights ranged from 16.03g to 14.75g, respectively, for the Sahelian and Sahelo-Sudanian zones. Leaflet lengths ranged from 2.48cm to 2.19cm, and leaf widths ranged from 1.37cm to 1.28cm, respectively, for the Sahelo-Sudanian and Sahelian zones. Significant and positive correlations were also observed between fruit and leaf parameters. Therefore, the existence of a water deficit adaptation strategy for Sclerocarya birrea, following the climatic gradient was noted. These results, although preliminary, confirm the possibility of using morphological traits to select interesting ideotypes for domestication of the species.
Author Keywords: Sclerocarya birrea, climatic gradient, adaptation, ideotypes, domestication.
How to Cite this Article
Idi Ounani Haoua, Boubacar Laouge Zakari, Dan Dano Na Inna Abdoul-Aziz, Sanda Liman Andraous, and Iro Dan Guimbo, “Morphological variations of leaves and fruits of Sclerocarya birrea in two climatic zones of Niger,” International Journal of Innovation and Applied Studies, vol. 47, no. 3, pp. 321–331, January 2026.
