Keeping your eyes open in the field can result in some unusual finds. A recent observation that was sent in concerned an avocado fruit which didn't really have the shape of an avocado and certainly not the texture. It is a "woody avocado" as described by Professor Robert Hodgson of UCLA in 1935:
Hodgson, R. W. 1935. Avocado Fruit Abnormalities. California Avocado Association 1935 Yearbook 19: 108-109.
http://www.avocadosource.com/cas_yearbooks/cas_20_1935/cas_1935_pg_108-109.pdf
Dr. Art Schroeder at the same institution pursued it further, still with no clear cause for the condition:
Schroeder, C. A. 1953. Abnormal Fruit Types in the Avocado. California Avocado Society 1953-54 Yearbook. 38:121-124.
http://avocadosource.com/cas_yearbooks/cas_38_1953-54/cas_1953-54_pg_121-124.pdf
Mary Lu Arpaia and Reuben Hofshi revisited the issue of avocado fruit abnormalities in 2002:
Avocado Fruit Abnormalities and Defects Revisited
http://www.avocadosource.com/cas_yearbooks/cas_86_2002/cas_2002_pg_147-162.pdf
It is still not clear what causes this condition, other than it is not transmissible and does not occur very often.
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