Illipe Nut II

Illipe nuts come in a wide variety of sizes and shapes. Irregardless of the size of the seed produced, all species of illipe nut flower and fruit synchronously at unpredictable intervals of from 2 to 10 years. This reproductive behavior, known as "mast fruiting",  is thought to be an evolutionary response to excessive seed predation. What this means from a commercial standpoint, however, is that the availability of seeds from year to year is almost impossible to predict.  Try explaining that to your buyers. [NOTE: Mast fruiting is thought to limit the abundance of frugivores and seed predators in the forest by concentrating their food supply into one brief period every few years when they are swamped by more food than they can posisble eat.]