Why are trees shy in the tropical forest? Tree crown shyness is an unusual natural phenomenon. What is crown shyness

Crown shyness is a phenomenon that occurs in some tree species when the crowns of fully developed trees do not touch, forming a forest canopy with gaps. Other names are “canopy openness,” “canopy shyness,” or “crown space.” Observed in trees of the same species, but cases between trees have been recorded different types.

Scientists have not reached a consensus on the exact causes of “shyness,” although scientific literature this phenomenon has been discussed since the 1920s.

According to one version, tall thin trees are damaged during strong winds, and in order to avoid colliding with each other, they react with “crown shyness.” Experiments have shown that trees gradually fill the gaps between the crowns if they are artificially limited from collision by the action of wind.

However, Malaysian scientist Francis Ng, who studied Dryobalanops aromatica in 1977, found no evidence of friction damage on this tree and suggested that the apical growth zones are sensitive to light levels and stop growing when approaching other plants.

Another explanation is that “canopy shyness” prevents leafminer insects from spreading.

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Crown shyness is a natural phenomenon observed in some tree species when the crowns of fully developed trees do not touch, forming a forest canopy with gap channels.

Other names are “canopy openness,” “canopy shyness,” or “crown space.” It is observed in trees of the same species, but cases have been recorded between trees of different species.

Scientists have not agreed on the exact causes of shyness, although the phenomenon has been discussed in the scientific literature since the 1920s.

According to one version, tall thin trees are damaged during strong winds and, in order to avoid colliding with each other, react with “crown shyness.” Experiments have shown that trees gradually fill the gaps between the crowns if they are artificially limited from collision by the action of wind.

However, Malaysian scientist Francis Ng, who studied Dryobalanops aromatica in 1977, found no evidence of friction damage on this tree and suggested that the apical growth zones are sensitive to light levels and stop growing when approaching other plants.

Another explanation is that “canopy shyness” prevents leafminer insects from spreading.

The Malaysian Forest Research Institute tells tourists that the leaves emit ethanol, a gas that “drives” the branches of neighboring trees away from each other.

There are also parascientific versions related to bioenergy. In 1939, Krasnodar physiotherapist Semyon Davidovich Kirlian invented original method photographing objects in a high-frequency electrical discharge. Particularly impressive were the photos of plants that created a special halo around themselves. They seemed to be surrounded by an aura. Surprisingly, it changed: a lonely leaf “glowed” completely differently than one surrounded by neighbors on a branch.

In the mid-60s, Soviet researcher Viktor Adamenko, experimenting with the “Kirlian effect,” discovered that a cropped sheet in a Kirlian photograph appears intact. Later, University of California professor Thelma Moss repeated this experiment and became convinced of the reality of the strange phenomenon. And the Brazilian researcher Hernani Andrade slightly modified the experiment. He did not cut off, but killed part of the leaf and got the same result.

What are “luminous phantoms”? Don't they indicate that living plant permeated with a certain energy “framework”, which disappears only after its entire death? And could “crown shyness” be caused by this phenomenon? The question remains open.