3. Solanum cerasiferum Dunal, Prodr. [A.P. de Candolle] 13(1): 365. 1852.

Distribution. From Senegal to Cameroon, Sudan and Ethiopia; continental Africa north of the Equator; fallow land, scrubland, and woodland, 450–1200 m elevation.

Solanum cerasiferum is morphologically very similar to and partly sympatric with S. campylacanthum, from which it differs in its lobed leaves with attentuate bases and sparser pubescence. It has a more northern and western distribution than S. campylacanthum, with some populations with intermediate morphological character combinations known from the northern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. West African populations with a dense cover of trichomes also resemble sympatric populations of S. incanum . Individual specimens from the area of sympatry can be difficult to identify, but a careful examination of leaves (particularly the bases) will enable differentation (see Table 2). Solanum cerasiferum usually has several long-styled flowers and fruits per inflorescence, and generally exhibits weaker andromonoecy than other African eggplant relatives. It is not known if S. cerasiferum forms clonal populations as does S. campylacanthum .