We all know on some level what constitutes life. A biologist might characterize life as an organism that (or who) undergoes metabolism, maintains homeostasis, possesses a capacity to grow, responds to stimuli, reproduces, and through natural selection, adapts to its environment in successive generations. Right. But if you come at it from a more philosophical point of view, or even a more laymen's perspective, you might contemplate life in terms of varying degrees of consciousness (doesn't a dog's ability to see its own reflection make it more alive than lichen?), memory recall (how about elephants visiting the graves of loved ones after five years?) and communication. The latter is what inspired me to write this entry after eons of not feeling inspired to write an entry. And so I am here to divulge three formidable facts about some very social trees.
- Some species of oak, willow, and poplar talk. When infested with a severe disease, these trees emit a chemical into the vicinity to warn other nearby trees of the attack. The neighboring trees respond by increasing tannin production as a defense against the incursion.
- Trees often interlink their roots and maintain a kind of buddy system, where they share nutrients depending on which tree needs them more.
- It seems that trees hold a conference on when to bloom, where they consent to all bloom at the same time so their predators will have such an abundant feast of food that they won't eat ever manage to eat all of it at once.
Check out this video from University of British Columbia professor Suzanne Simard for more deets. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=s8V0IJ11CoE
Makes you think twice about levels of consciousness, doesn't it?
