Page 86 - The Miracle In The Seed

THE MIRACLE IN THE SEED

The Symbiotic Relationship between the Agouti and

the Bertholletia Tree
The seeds of South America’s bertholletia tree, or Brazil nuts, are
enclosed in a large round capsule, which, after falling from the tree, lies
on the forest floor and remains intact for a time. This is because it has
little attraction to many animals; it has no smell, is very hard to break,
and there is nothing remarkable about its appearance. But for the nuts
inside the capsule to sprout, they must somehow be removed and
buried in the soil.
Yet none of this is a problem for the bertholletia tree, because liv-
ing in the same habitat is a creature with the necessary characteristics
to get round these obstacles.
The agouti, a South American rodent, knows that there’s somet-
hing edible inside the thick, odorless capsule. Agoutis’ sharp, pointed
teeth can easily break through the hard shells. In every capsule there
are about twenty nuts, far more than an agouti can eat at one sitting. So
a satisfied agouti carries the nuts in its cheek pouches and digs small
holes to store them in and covers them over, much as a squirrel does
with acorns. Even though the agouti does this with the intention of eat-
ing the nuts later, it never does locate a considerable proportion of the

All the agoutis in the world feed on the nuts of the bertholletia tree. Likewise, all
bertholletia trees reproduce as a result of these animals burying their nuts in the
earth. This can certainly not be explained by coincidence, and is evidence that
both life forms are created by God.