Take a bite out of this: the agouti is the only animal that can crack open the hard outer shell of a Brazil nut.
What pollinates Brazil nuts?
Euglossine bees (most often the females) are the only creatures regularly able to gain entrance to the Brazil nut tree's flowers, which have lids on them. The bees enter to feed on nectar, and in the process they pollinate the flower. Pollination is necessary to initiate the production of nuts by the tree.
What animals eat agouti?
Predators: Hunters of the agouti include the jaguarundi, jaguar, ocelot, harpy eagle, large snakes , and people (who eat agouti).
Is an agouti a rat?
Agouti is the natural color of wild rats . Instead of being solid, each individual hair has three bands of color. The typical Agouti color is a rich chestnut with dark slate at the base of the hair. ... Many coat color mutations appear in Agouti rats bred in captivity: albino, black, hooded, and others.
What animals eat the Brazil nut tree?
One answer, it turns out, is the agouti — a small mammal that looks a bit like a large guinea pig. Agoutis have small, chisel-like teeth that can penetrate the Brazil nut's seed case. They eat some of the nuts.
How long does it take for a Brazil nut tree to grow?
The fruit takes about 14 months to mature once pollinated. The resulting fruit is quite large (4-6 inches (10-15 cm.) across and weighing up to 5 pounds or 2.3 kg.) and looks much akin to a coconut endocarp.
Why does a Brazil nut burn like a candle?
Brazil nuts may be high in calories (186 calories per ounce) and fat (up to of the castaña nut is pure oil, a fuel so concentrated that you can light a nut with a match and it will burn like a candle).
Why are Brazil nuts hard to find?
A lack of rain across South America due to El Niño also caused the Brazil nut pods to fall early causing fewer seeds to germinate and develop into trees. Besides, due to the drop in the production of Brazil nuts in recent years, cutting down a Brazil nut tree has been banned in Brazil.
Are Brazil nuts ethical?
If the agouti are not hunted, or the hunting of them is at least controlled, Brazil nuts are an incredibly eco-friendly and sustainable crop (if we're looking at the statistics from waterfootprint.org rather than healabel.com, see below for more information).
Are Brazil nuts eco-friendly?
Over time an agouti will forget where some nuts are buried, or it will die, leaving the brazil nuts to germinate successfully. The Brazil nut, often called the “eco-nut”, is classed as a non-timber forest product (NTFP). ... Readily exploitable eco-friendly NTFPs include fruits, dyes and medicines.
Do agouti eat bananas?
Diet of the Agouti
These rodents are herbivores, which means that they eat plants. Most of their diet consists of nuts, berries, and fruits .
Do agouti make good pets?
Agoutis weigh up to nine pounds. They're famous for being the only mammal that can open the hard fruit of the Brazil nut tree without a tool. They are sometimes kept as exotic pets . ... They are occasionally kept as pets, but not as often as the agouti.
How fast can an agouti run?
They can run just an hour after birth and usually stay with their parents until the next litter is born. It can be hard to see in a dark rainforest habitat, so the agouti marks its territory with urine as a smelly way to tell other agoutis to keep out. Agoutis are good swimmers but cannot dive.
Are rex rats good pets?
Because rex rats are so gentle, they make very good first pets . While it may make some parents cringe, rats are less likely to bite than more popular critters like hamsters or guinea pigs. They also tend to be less skittish and more physically affectionate. ... You need to get your rat out to play as much as you can.
What is a Silvermane rat?
Silvermane is a coat type caused by a dominant gene . It has a silver appearance that is caused by the end of the hair shafts being translucent/empty. Silvermane also causes a dark mask on the muzzle.
What colors do rats come in?
Pet rats come in many different coat colors. The AFRMA recognizes 40 distinct colors, including beige, champagne, chocolate, platinum, black-eyed white, pink-eyed white, silver black, silver lilac , hooded, Dalmatian, and many more. Eye colors include black, dark ruby, ruby, light ruby, red, and pink.
