Current:Home > MarketsAre there any 'fairy circles' in the U.S.? Sadly, new study says no. -Ascend Wealth Education
Are there any 'fairy circles' in the U.S.? Sadly, new study says no.
View
Date:2025-04-16 08:11:13
The most comprehensive atlas of so-called 'fairy circles' to date was published Monday, a new study reports. In the atlas, the researchers documented 263 new fairy circle sites in 15 countries and in three continents, including sites in Madagascar and Asia.
Alas, none have yet been officially documented in North America.
"Our study provides evidence that fairy circles are far more common than previously thought, which has allowed us, for the first time, to globally understand the factors affecting their distribution" said study co-author Manuel Delgado Baquerizo, in a statement.
The study about the new research was published Monday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The lead author is Emilio Guirado of the University of Alicante, in Spain.
What are fairy circles?
The phenomenon of fairy circles, featuring patterns of bare soil surrounded by circular vegetation patches, has long fascinated and puzzled scientists.
Theories about their causes have ranged from termite activity to poisoning from toxic indigenous plants to contamination from radioactive minerals and even ostrich dust baths, according to the Telegraph.
Whatever their cause, vegetation patterns such as rings, bands and spots sometimes occur in deserts and arid regions.
Prior to this study, they'd only been documented in the drylands of southwest Africa and in central Australia.
'The first atlas of their global distribution'
"Our study provides insights into the ecology and biogeography of these fascinating vegetation patterns and the first atlas of their global distribution," the study authors write.
The world's most famous collection of fairy circles is in southwest Africa: Millions of these fairy circles are in the Namib Desert, which stretches along the Atlantic coasts of Angola, Namibia and South Africa.
The circles, or rings, range in size from about 12 feet to about 114 feet in diameter and consist of bare patches of soil surrounded by rings of grass.
Where are fairy circles found?
According to the new study, "fairy-circle-like vegetation patterns are found in environments characterized by a unique combination of soil (including low nutrient levels and high sand content) and climatic (arid regions with high temperatures and high precipitation seasonality) conditions."
"In addition to these factors, the presence of specific biological elements (termite nests) in certain regions also plays a role in the presence of these patterns," the study said.
How was the fairy circle study done?
With the help of artificial intelligence-based models and close study of satellite images, the researchers found hundreds of new locations with patterns similar to the fairy circles of Namibia and Western Australia.
The new circles were discovered in the Sahel, Western Sahara, the Horn of Africa, Madagascar, Southwest Asia and Central Australia.
So far, no fairy circles have yet been documented anywhere in the Americas or in Europe.
veryGood! (434)
Related
- 'Squid Game' without subtitles? Duolingo, Netflix encourage fans to learn Korean
- Climate Change and Habitat Loss is Driving Some Primates Down From the Trees and Toward an Uncertain Future
- Dolly Parton Makes Surprise Appearance on Claim to Fame After Her Niece Is Eliminated
- Amazon Prime Day 2023: Fashion Deals Under $50 From Levi's, New Balance, The Drop & More
- Senate begins final push to expand Social Security benefits for millions of people
- Why Keke Palmer Is Telling New Moms to “Do You” After Boyfriend Darius Jackson’s Online Drama
- Home prices dip, Turkey's interest rate climbs, Amazon gets sued
- Once Cheap, Wind and Solar Prices Are Up 34%. What’s the Outlook?
- Louvre will undergo expansion and restoration project, Macron says
- How Decades of Hard-Earned Protections and Restoration Reversed the Collapse of California’s Treasured Mono Lake
Ranking
- Which apps offer encrypted messaging? How to switch and what to know after feds’ warning
- Remember Reaganomics? Freakonomics? Now there's Bidenomics
- Amazon Prime Day 2023 Alternatives: Shop Target, Walmart, Wayfair, Ulta, Kohl's & More Sales
- Prime Day 2023 Deal: 30% Off the Celeb-Loved Laneige Lip Mask Used by Sydney Sweeney, Alix Earle & More
- 'Squid Game' without subtitles? Duolingo, Netflix encourage fans to learn Korean
- Why Keke Palmer Is Telling New Moms to “Do You” After Boyfriend Darius Jackson’s Online Drama
- Scientists say new epoch marked by human impact — the Anthropocene — began in 1950s
- Every Bombshell From Secrets of Miss America
Recommendation
'As foretold in the prophecy': Elon Musk and internet react as Tesla stock hits $420 all
Surprise, you just signed a contract! How hidden contracts took over the internet
Harry Styles Reacts to Tennis Star Elina Monfils Giving Up Concert Tickets Amid Wimbledon Run
Activists Are Suing Texas Over Its Plan to Expand Interstate 35, Saying the Project Is Bad for Environmental Justice and the Climate
Sonya Massey's father decries possible release of former deputy charged with her death
Tom Holland Recalls Being Enslaved to Alcohol Before Sobriety Journey
How a New ‘Battery Data Genome’ Project Will Use Vast Amounts of Information to Build Better EVs
Bank of America to pay $250 million for illegal fees, fake accounts