88K views · 287 reactions | The sandbox tree | Unbelievable facts | Facebook

Sandbox trees are a forest tree that grow to 200 feet. Their numerous sharp spines on the bark protect them from predation, and earn them the nickname Monkey No Climb. Their seed pods (above) use explosive dehiscence to spread the seeds as far as 330 feet. They make such a loud noise when exploding that another nickname for this tree is dynamite tree. The seeds, an open one shown above, are commonly found around the trees. Since the side of the seed is shaped a bit like a bottlenose dolphin, art

Does this strange tree explode?! 🤯 When two distantly related species independently evolve to have similar characteristics, we call that “convergent evolution.” Another example that we could observe with Sandbox tree (Hura crepitans) is that the mechanism by which it produces its “exploding” seedpods is very similar to Jewelweed (Impatiens capensis) or “Touch-me-not.” Can you think of any other examples in nature where this has happened? (Exploding seed video from Maya-ethnobotany) #sandboxtree

Meet the Sandbox Tree 👀 | Odd Danny