Still Waters Posted March 29, 2013 #1 Share Posted March 29, 2013 The "artists" behind bizarre, barren, grassless rings dotting the desert of Southwest Africa have been found lurking right at scientists' feet: termites. Known as fairy circles, these patches crop up in regular patterns along a narrow strip of the Namib Desert between mid-Angola and northwestern South Africa, and can persist for decades. The cause of these desert pockmarks has been widely debated, but a species of sand termite, Psammotermes allocerus, could be behind the mysterious dirt rings, suggests a study published today (March 28) in the journal Science. http://news.yahoo.co...-180452868.html 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ashotep Posted March 29, 2013 #2 Share Posted March 29, 2013 Busy little critters. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eldorado Posted March 30, 2013 #3 Share Posted March 30, 2013 Busy little critters. Smart little critters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starseed hybrid 1111 Posted March 30, 2013 #4 Share Posted March 30, 2013 i like that guys smart and busy little critters.that's so cool.animals and insects and etc are smart nothing new if course but still interesting:)the rings do look awesome though. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HuntrSThompsun Posted March 30, 2013 #5 Share Posted March 30, 2013 My junk itches 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dharma warrior Posted March 30, 2013 #6 Share Posted March 30, 2013 Fairies, termites,...close enough. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paperdyer Posted March 31, 2013 #7 Share Posted March 31, 2013 Send in the Orkin Man! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sakari Posted March 31, 2013 #8 Share Posted March 31, 2013 I prefered alien spacecraft myself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheSpoonyOne Posted March 31, 2013 #9 Share Posted March 31, 2013 (edited) To be honest, South Africa isn't exactly the place I'd imagine fairies showing up even if they did exist. :/ Edited March 31, 2013 by TheSpoonyOne Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlienDan Posted March 31, 2013 #10 Share Posted March 31, 2013 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sakari Posted March 31, 2013 #11 Share Posted March 31, 2013 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hawken Posted March 31, 2013 #12 Share Posted March 31, 2013 Fairy circles? What a name! How about sand circles. Sorta like crop circles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
csspwns Posted March 31, 2013 #13 Share Posted March 31, 2013 So much for UFOs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woopypooky Posted April 1, 2013 #14 Share Posted April 1, 2013 so crop circles were done by rabbits? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oppono Astos Posted April 1, 2013 #15 Share Posted April 1, 2013 so crop circles were done by rabbits? Nope, intoxicated hedgehogs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HollyDolly Posted April 26, 2013 #16 Share Posted April 26, 2013 There is an ant that also will clear the grass away from where it nests into circular areas,forgot what they are called. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doug1029 Posted April 26, 2013 #17 Share Posted April 26, 2013 Known as fairy circles, these patches crop up in regular patterns along a narrow strip of the Namib Desert between mid-Angola and northwestern South Africa, and can persist for decades. The cause of these desert pockmarks has been widely debated, but a species of sand termite, Psammotermes allocerus, could be behind the mysterious dirt rings, suggests a study published today (March 28) in the journal Science. There are lots of things that form "fairy rings." Fungi consume the available organics out of the soil. The center of the patch then starves for lack of food, while the edges expand outward. You can see this in lawns after a good rain. It's pretty cool when you find a complete ring. There's a ring-shaped creosote bush in the Mojave Desert that has consumed the nutrients in the inner area. Based on size and rate-of-spread, it is estimated at 15,000 years old - older than the desert it's in. Some types of bunch grass in dry areas do this. There's not enough water in the middle, so that area dies out, leaving a ring. Doug Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wickian Posted April 27, 2013 #18 Share Posted April 27, 2013 Makes sense, I have a large backyard with quite a few ant colonies(the mellow large black ant variety that you can put your hand into a line of and they'll just walk over you if you do it right) and their ant holes are cleared of all plant life in a few feet radius. They eat all the seeds/foxtails all year long. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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