Cycles of light and dark impact almost all living things, and events such as eclipses can cause noticeable changes in how they act and function. While these impacts are well studied in animals, we still know very little about how plants respond to solar eclipses.
Now, in a new study carried out in Italy's Dolomite Mountains, researchers have found that spruce trees actively anticipate these eclipses.
Not only that, older trees appear to show a stronger early response, suggesting they carry long-term memory of past environmental events that may be used to help alert and guide younger trees in the forest.
This remarkable behaviour – known as bioelectrical synchronisation – provides further evidence that trees are capable of complex, coordinated communication.
“This discovery underscores the critical importance of protecting older forests, which serve as pillars of ecosystem resilience by preserving and transmitting invaluable ecological knowledge,” says Professor Monica Gagliano, one of the study's lead authors. The findings were published in the journal Royal Society Open Science.
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Arboreal memory banks
The study used specially designed low-energy sensors to monitor trees in the Dolomites. Researchers recorded electrical activity from multiple trees at the same time, noticing that their signals became increasingly synchronised in the lead-up to a solar eclipse.
“By applying advanced analytical methods – including complexity measures and quantum field theory– we have uncovered a deeper, previously unrecognised dynamic synchronisation not based on matter exchanges among trees,” says Professor Alessandro Chiolerio, another lead author of the study.
“We now see the forest not as a mere collection of individuals, but as an orchestra of phase correlated plants.”
The discovery adds to a growing body of evidence suggesting that plants are not passive players in nature. Instead, they may act more like social, responsive communities, capable of sensing, sharing and reacting together to changes in their world.
Professor Gagliano believes the research highlights just how important older trees are for forest ecosystems. “The fact that older trees respond first – potentially guiding the collective response of the forest – speaks volumes about their role as memory banks of past environmental events.”
The research will feature in an upcoming documentary, Il Codice del Bosco (The Forest Code), set to release in May 2025 in Italy – watch the official trailer below.
Find out more about the study: Bioelectrical synchronization of Picea abiesduring a solar eclipse
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