Firstly, I understand that it is classified as a drupe and its mesocarp is fibrous hence its hardness. However, how did botanists conclude such? Putting both mango and coconut side by side, we can at least see that the mango has fleshy mesocarp and soft exocarp. I would argue that the coconut's structure bears more similarity to the durian yet the latter is a capsule (or dry).
With that in mind, I cannot comprehend how the pericarp is distinguishable in 3 layers in coconut but not in durian yet they seem to be same? If coconut is like a deviant under drupes due to its fibrous mesocarp, (1) how'd they even distinguish that it was a mesocarp and (2) what is the clincher that made them conclude that coconut is indeed a fleshy and drupe despite seemingly deviant from common examples such as mango?
Apologies for not being articulate enough to explain.
