Wednesday, August 16, 2017 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
19
Eclipse watch: How will plants and critters respond?
By Kym Pokorny
Correspondent
CORVALLIS – How
plants and animals react
when skies turn black during
the total eclipse Aug. 21 is
mostly a mystery, but a hor-
ticulture expert with Oregon
State University Extension
Service has some educated
guesses.
The most likely scenario
is that temperatures drop
by 10 to 15 degrees, wind
speeds decrease, birds and
insects quiet down and plants
respond as if the day is night
and start to shut down, said
Brooke Edmunds, Extension
horticulturist. However,
the eclipse’s time frame –
about two-and-a-half hours,
including a couple of min-
utes of complete darkness in
the path of totality – may not
be long enough to see plant
or animal reactions.
“Animal, insect and plant
behavior depends on the spe-
cies, but many may initiate
a response to the perceived
night conditions,” she said.
“There are many anecdotal
observations and very few
scientific studies so it’s dif-
ficult to know the exact
responses.”
Songbirds could stop
singing or change their rep-
ertoire and roosting birds
may take a nap. There’s a
chance bats will eschew
their upside-down sleep and
set out for a nighttime flight.
These responses would be
a result of cooling tempera-
tures as well as darkness,
Edmunds said.
Because the eclipse is a
gradual process, birds will
sense dusk coming on, then
night slip in, and morning
return. Though the process is
not as long as a regular night,
those that spend the darkness
quiet or roosting will prob-
ably start that process during
the eclipse.
“Even during partial
eclipses, birds perceive it as
night,” Edmunds said. “Their
automatic response would
be, ‘It’s nighttime. I need to
do what I do at night.’”
Insects such as crick-
ets and cicadas could very
well start up their chirping
and bees may return to their
hives. One study out of
Mexico showed that a spe-
cies of orb-weaving spi-
der reacted during a total
eclipse by tearing down
their webs and then rebuild-
ing when the eclipse
ended.
“For the observant, it’s
a once-in-a-lifetime experi-
ence,” Edmunds said. “If
you pay attention, you may
pick up on different things
that happen. It’s an exciting
opportunity.”
And not just for adults.
The eclipse provides an
occasion to expand kids’
knowledge of the natural
world.
“My daughter asked if
all the leaves would fall off
the trees,” she said. “They’re
naturally curious, so the
eclipse is a perfect time to
have them explore.”
Alexander Levin, an
assistant professor of viticul-
ture at OSU, plans to focus
his attention on plants during
the eclipse.
“They’ll basically have
a short break,” he said. “It
probably won’t make a huge
difference. It’s not like the
eclipse goes from zero to
100. It’s comes on slowly
and slowly goes away.”
Regardless, he expects to
see some changes, even if
small.
“At the end of the day,
the plants’ total water use
will likely decrease,” he
said, “but they’ll have taken
up less carbon (that’s turned
into sugars) because photo-
synthesis is highly dependent
on sunlight.”
Edmunds added that
leaves may fold up on some
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ers such as nicotiana and
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sibly open their flowers.
There haven’t been any
definitive studies done,
however.
For Edmunds and Levin,
the fun is in the mystery.
Check the OSU Extension
Facebook page in the days
following the eclipse for
their comments.
Be sure to protect your
eyes by wearing special
eclipse glasses. Looking at
the sun can cause permanent
damage.
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