beak

Through previous projects, Armstrong became aware of oral traditions that told of how ancient humans cultivated beaked hazelnut.

For example, Darwin's finches illustrate how such changes can manifest: They have evolved different beak shapes adapted to various food supplies available on the Galápagos Island.

Hummingbird bills -- their long, thin beaks -- look a little like drinking straws.

They have evolved natural skylights to fuel the growth of their algal companions without opening their shells and exposing themselves to the beaks and claws of potential predators.

But a northern population of beaked hazelnuts revealed something surprising: five distinct genetic subgroups, four of which could be traced to far-flung locations across British Columbia, some 800 kilometers away.