Magic circles in Namibia are round areas of land without vegetation with a diameter of 2 to 15 meters,
Discuss
Leading the hypothesis explaining the situation, shareinto two main camps. The first claims that the circles are caused by root-eating termites, and the second claims that grasses self-organize to maximize water availability.
Recent studies have provided more support for the second hypothesis. However, the influence of termites is still not excluded.
Scientists in one of the latest works trackedsporadic rains in 10 regions. They studied the circumstances associated with the death of grass after rain and installed soil moisture sensors in and around the magic circles. It turned out that ten days after the rain, there were very few growing grasses inside the circles, and those that had already sprouted were dying. Twenty days after the rain, all the grass inside the circles was dead, and the surrounding grass was "green and soft". The roots of the dead plants inside the circles were as long or even longer than the roots outside the circles. Soil sensors, meanwhile, detected a slow decrease in soil moisture both inside and outside the circles after the first rain, when the grasses had not yet taken root. However, as soon as the surrounding plants became strong, the soil moisture everywhere quickly disappeared, including inside the circles.
“During the intense heat in the Namibe, the grasses are constantly losing water. Consequently, they create a soil-moist vacuum around their roots, and water is attracted to them, ”the scientists explained.