Brazil’s nut-breakers refuse to crack as their precious palms are threatened

Women from the quilombo community of Monte Alegre collect babaçu coconuts, although some have to be coaxed from the tree using a long pole Photograph: Kristin Bethge/The Guardian

Early on a Saturday morning in Monte Alegre, five women are out in the forest, deftly smacking fist-sized brown coconuts on a blade. In a shady spot amid the trees, they sit around a mound of babaçu – also called babassu – coconuts, separating seed from shell by knocking the nuts on axes half-buried in the ground, sharp edge pointing skywards. The chat is about their plans for the evening.

“I can’t make more effort, I’ve got to save some energy to dance this evening,” says Maria Cecília de Jesus, 39.