New Illustra Film: The Seed that Drills Itself into the Ground

Some of the most extraordinary events in nature take place in small, common plants under our feet.

The latest in a series of short films from Illustra Media is “absolutely AWN-some,” the title says. Awn? Yes: awns are slender filaments attached to the seeds of some plants, including wild oats and others. Awns are specifically designed to move without muscles! They respond to humidity changes by curling when dry, and un-curling when wet. The results are eye-popping. Watch what happens here:

The caption reads,

A ripened fruit catapults its seeds to fertile soil. Dead tissue is energized to move dynamically under its own power. A seed sows itself. Witness all this and more in the fascinating life cycle of a plant known as stork’s bill. This unforgettable video is a celebration of the unseen mystery and wonder of life on earth.

Previously, Illustra has revealed wonders of nature in pine cones, dandelions and other subjects. Some of the short films include re-released episodes from their full-length documentaries, such as Living Waters, Metamorphosis, Flight: The Genius of Birds and Call of the Cosmos. Others, like this one, are brand new productions. Here are the latest new titles:

• Packages of Life — the amazing story of forest regeneration after fire
• An Uplifting Story — how dandelion seeds use physics to stay aloft
• Of Fingertips and Galaxies — the scale of the universe revealed by the Hubble Legacy Field
• Absolutely Awn-Some — today’s new release about stork’s bill seeds

All these films can be found on Illustra’s free-film site, The John 10:10 Project — a reference to the words of Jesus to his disciples, “I have come that you may have life, and have it more abundantly.” Look for the nature films in these video categories:

• 2-Minute Wonders: very short films two to four minutes in length
• Awesome Wonders: short films five to eight minutes in length (including “Absolutely Awn-Some”)

Wild storksbill plants growing in the Antelope Valley, April 11, 2020. Notice awns visible at lower left. Photo by DFC.

The editor of Creation-Evolution Headlines teamed up with Illustra on this film by providing some of the scientific fact-checking and by collecting samples of fresh storksbill seeds with intact awns. These samples were filmed in slow-motion and high-resolution to capture the action. Probably no other documentary has shown such beautiful close-ups of these natural drills.

All of Illustra Media’s short films are easy to share on social media (click the paper-airplane icon at upper right of each film). Those who enjoy the high quality production value and stimulating content can support Illustra by subscribing to TheJohn1010Project.com. Subscription brings newsletters, offers for free access to more films, and a link to “help reach the world” by supporting Illustra Media financially.

CEH is honored to partner with Illustra Media, producers of the highest-quality films supporting intelligent design and Christian apologetics. Illustra could use your help more now than ever. DVD sales, for years the main source of revenue, have been dropping rapidly for all producers, and now most people expect to watch things online for free. So there is good news (films are easy to share all across the world without having to buy hardcopy) but bad news (lost income for producers from DVD sales).

Browse through the catalog of diverse and universally-interesting episodes on the John 10:10 Project website. If you want to see more films like this, consider subscribing and donating regularly. Notice also that dozens of titles have been translated into foreign languages, like Spanish, French, Portuguese, German and Mandarin Chinese on Illustra’s YouTube channel. Supporting Illustra really does “help reach the world” in a very approachable, winsome way. CEH agrees with Illustra that there is nothing like AWE of nature to open people’s hearts to the good news!