Common Pear vs Callery Pear
Common and callery pear can be tricky to identify when the fruit is not present, as both flowers and foliage look similar. Common pear eventually reverts back to a wild type with small fruit, but the fruit are still easily distinguished by shape.
Common Pear (Pyrus communis) | Callery Pear (Pyrus calleryana) |
Most cultivated pears in the West are from this species. Native to Europe and Western Asia, this tree has become established across North America, usually persisting mostly around abandoned orchards. | Widely planted as a street tree in the U.S., this species is native to East Asia and has become invasive across a large range of North America. |
 Flowers have 5 styles (long portion of pistils, in center of flower) Flowers usually slightly broader, space between petals at the base of each petal. Photo © Enrique Flores, CC BY-SA 4.0. |  Flowers have 2-3 styles. Slightly smaller flowers, with petals usually overlapping at the base. Photo © Joanne Redwood, Public Domain. |
 Fruit tapered (hinting at the shape of cultivated pears) where it attaches to the stem. Not spotted. Photo © Joanne Redwood, Public Domain. |  Fruit flat or slightly depressed where it attaches to the stem. Spotted. Photo © DM, CC BY 4.0. |
References & External Resources
These short lists show only links helpful for ID. For a complete list of references and resources also covering other aspects of ecology, visit the links section of the full article on each plant, which is the first entry here.
