The Brazil Nut Tree, Bertholletia Excels (N = 17), Is

question 15

Multiple Choice

The Brazil nut tree, Bertholletia excels (n = 17) , is native to tropical rain forests of South America. It is a hardwood tree that can grow to over 50 metres tall, a source of high-quality timber, and a favourite nesting site for harpy eagles. As the rainy season ends, tough-walled fruits, each containing 8-25 seeds (Brazil nuts) , fall to the forest floor. Brazil nuts are composed primarily of endosperm. About $50 million worth of nuts are harvested each year. Scientists have discovered that the pale yellow flowers of Brazil nut trees cannot fertilise themselves and admit only female orchid bees as pollinators. The agouti (Dasyprocta spp.) , a cat-sized rodent, is the only animal with teeth strong enough to crack the hard wall of Brazil nut fruits. It typically eats some of the seeds, buries others, and leaves still others inside the fruit, which moisture can then enter and allow the remaining seeds to germinate.
-The agouti is most directly involved with the Brazil nut tree's dispersal of ________.

• A) female gametophytes
• B) sporophyte embryos
• C) sporophyte megaspores
• D) female gametes

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Definitions:

Normal Good

A type of good for which demand increases as consumers' income increases, and vice versa.

Inferior Good

A category of product whose demand falls when the income levels of buyers rise, in opposition to normal goods.

Consumer Choice

The range of preferences and decisions consumers face regarding the use of products, influenced by income, price, tastes, and preferences.

Demand for Product

The quantity of a good or service that consumers are willing and able to purchase at various prices during a specified period.