A short, public domain guide on how to identify small-flower pawpaws (asimina parviflora) and tell them apart from other species like common pawpaws (asimina triloba) and other, unrelated lookalikes they are commonly confused for, like hickories, persimmons, and more.
This guide is intended to be public domain, to help as many people learn about these species as possible. All photos inside are sourced from iNaturalist.org, and are also public domain, most of them taken by me. Each photo comes with an image description and the URL of the source observation, as well as the name of the observer. You can find my iNaturalist profile by searching for "nonbinary-naturalist", where I will have links to a PDF and ePub version of this book as well, which you can download for free :)
Small-flower pawpaws are native to the southern United States, and can be found in a range from North Carolina, to eastern Texas, down to Florida. If you live within their normal range, I hope this guide inspires you to go out and look for them, and helps you to more confidently identify them if you do find them.
The author of the guide is nonbinary, and uses it/its pronouns, so when refering to me, please refer to me as "it" rather than "he", "she", or "they". Ex: "It made a guide on how to identify pawpaws!"
Happy pawpaw hunting! Remember to throw the seeds back into the woods, or plant them yourself! Pointy side UP, with two inches of soil above them! Have fun!