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Hitching a Ride
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Barbados cherry Cashew apples (hypocarp) and nuts of the domesticated cashew tree (Anacardium occidentale).
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Saint Lucia Day. Young girl wears Lucia crown (tinsel halo) with candles. Holds Saint Lucia Day currant laced saffron buns (lussekatter or Lucia's cats). Observed December 13 honor virgin martyr Santa Lucia (St. Lucy). Luciadagen, Christmas, Sweden
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Barbados cherry
Barbados cherry Barbados cherry (Malpighia emarginata).

Hitching a Ride

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Written by
Allen Herre
Staff Scientist, Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Panama.
Allen Herre
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Article History

Numerous plants depend on animal dispersers to transport seeds either internally or externally. Birds generally disperse seeds internally by eating the fruits, which are often small and red and the numerous seeds of which easily pass through the birds’ digestive systems. Some seeds actually have higher rates of germination after passing through animal gut; others benefit from being deposited in nutrient-rich dung. Fruit bats such as the Jamaican, or common, fruit bat (Artibeus jamaicensis) are important seed dispersers in Panama, feeding on many fruits, including those of figs (genus Ficus) and cecropias (genus Cecropia), and distributing some seeds internally and ...(100 of 644 words)

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