Morning Mug: The Porcelain Berry

Sheepshead Bites’ Business Manager Robert Fernandez found these berries on the corner of Avenue Y and East 15th Street and, with a little research on the interwebs, I learned that they are an invasive species of plant called “Ampelopsis brevipedunculata,” otherwise known as “the porcelain berry.”

[The] ornamental plant [is] native to temperate areas of Asia. It is generally similar to, and potentially confused with, grape species (genus Vitis) and other Ampelopsis species.

[…]

The strange blue color of the berries is due to an anthocyanidins-flavonols copigmentation phenomenon.

We’ll take your word for it, Wikipedia.

Photo by Robert Fernandez.