Strange \u2018fairy circles\u2018 in the grasslands of Namibia have puzzled scientists for nearly five decades, but a new study has shed more light on the baffling phenomenon.
\nAccording to international media reports, millions of circular patches, each a few metres wide, are found in the coastal desert region of Namib, around 80 to 140km from the Atlantic shoreline.
\nIt was thought termites could be responsible for the phenomenon. But a new study, published in the journal Perspectives in Plant Ecology, Evolution and Systematics, suggests the circles could be caused by the grasses themselves adapting to the very limited supply of water.
\nIt assessed sporadic rain events in numerous desert regions and analysed grasses, their roots and shoots, as well as potential termite root damage to explain these patterns, and concluded that the \u201cfairy circles\u201d are caused by plant water stress.
\nAs per international media reports, researchers, including some from the University of G\u00f6ttingen in Germany, found that the grasses \u201cself-organise\u201d into the geometrical formation to share out water in order to survive.
\nThey installed soil-moisture sensors in and around the fairy circles to record the soil\u2019s water content at 30-minute intervals, starting in the dry season of 2020 and up to the end of the rainy season of 2022.
\nScientists also studied how the new emerging grasses around the circles affected the soil water within and around the circles, and assessed the differences in water infiltration between the inside and outside of circles in 10 regions across the Namib.
\nThe findings revealed that, about 10 days after rainfall, the grasses were already starting to die within the circles while most of the interior area of the circles did not have grass germination at all.
\nAbout 20 days after rainfall, the struggling grasses within the circles were completely dead while the surrounding grasses were green.
\nScientists then examined the roots of the grasses from within the circles and compared them with the green grasses on the outside.
\nThey found that the roots of the grasses within the circles were as long as, or even longer than, those outside, indicating that the grasses were putting effort into the growth of roots in search of water.
\nHowever, they found no evidence of termites feeding on roots and it was not until 50-60 days after rainfall that root damage became more visible on the dead grasses.
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