Some Observations on the Cytology and Cytomixis in Canavalia DC

Cytological studies were carried on two species of Canavalia, C. virosa and C. ensiformis, to understand their relationships. Distinct cytological differences were observed in the two species, although the chromosome number was the same (n=11). C. virosa showed normal meiosis, except for the presence of a few univalents, whereas in C. ensiformis cytomixis during the pre-meiotic and meiotic stages was observed. Since only the nucleolus took part in the process of cytomixis, the chromosome number remained constant and subsequent stages of meiosis were normal resulting in fertile pollen grains.