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Enigma of Namibia's 'fairy-circles' -
BBC - UK ^
| March 31, 2004
Posted on 04/01/2004 9:47:37 AM PST by UnklGene
Enigma of Namibia's 'fairy-circles' -
Namibia's "fairy circles" are a popular tourist attraction South African botanists say they have failed to explain the mysterious round patches of bare sandy soil found in grassland on Namibia's coastal fringe. They looked into possible causes of the "fairy circles" - radioactive soil, toxic proteins left by poisonous plants, and termites eating the seeds.
But tests do not support any of these theories for the rings which are 2-10m across, New Scientist magazine reports.
For now, the botanists are left with "fairies" to explain the phenomenon.
Termite trenches
Lead scientist Gretel van Rooyen is now exploring the theory that, somehow, toxic elements are deposited in the shape of the circle, making it impossible for plant life to get established there.
"But even if we find them, how they came there is the next problem - for the moment, we're left with the fairies," Ms van Rooyen, from University of Pretoria, said.
Tests of soil samples taken from the circles found all to be negative for radioactivity and desert plants were successfully cultivated in the lab on soil which had previously supported poisonous milk bushes (Euphorbia damarana).
As for the termites, the team dug trenches up to 2m deep in and around the circles, but found no sign of these insects or their nests.
Fairy circles occur in a broken belt in the pro-Namib region, from southern Angola to the Orange River in South Africa and have become so famous that they are included in visitors' tours.
The research will appear in a future issue of the Journal of Arid Environments.
TOPICS: Foreign Affairs
KEYWORDS: alanturing; fairycircles; namibia; turing; turingpattern
1
posted on
04/01/2004 9:47:38 AM PST
by
UnklGene
To: UnklGene
What? they're not blaming Bush?
2
posted on
04/01/2004 9:52:11 AM PST
by
talleyman
(John Kerry won the Al Quaeda primary.)
To: UnklGene
There is at least one of these in DC, it's official name is DuPont.
3
posted on
04/01/2004 9:52:57 AM PST
by
American_Centurion
(Daisy-cutters trump a wiretap anytime - Nicole Gelinas)
To: American_Centurion
LOL!
4
posted on
04/01/2004 10:14:57 AM PST
by
AuH2ORepublican
(Extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice, moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue.)
To: UnklGene
Is a, "fairy circle," the same as a gay sex ring?
5
posted on
04/01/2004 10:24:50 AM PST
by
Joe 6-pack
("We deal in hard calibers and hot lead." - Roland Deschaines)
To: UnklGene
I always hated having to have an enigma.
6
posted on
04/01/2004 10:26:01 AM PST
by
zook
To: UnklGene
African Fairy Circle
San Francisco Fairy Circle
7
posted on
04/01/2004 10:33:30 AM PST
by
Slicksadick
(Go out on a limb.....................It's where the fruit is.)
To: Slicksadick
My nieghbors dog leaves me Fairy Circles on my lawn every once in a while.
8
posted on
04/01/2004 10:35:58 AM PST
by
Robe
(Rome did not create a great empire with meetings, they did it by killing all those who opposed them)
To: Slicksadick
thanks.
think I'll skip lunch today.
To: Joe 6-pack
I wonder if it's the same thing as a daisy chain...
10
posted on
04/01/2004 10:54:12 AM PST
by
Tulsa Brian
("Yet, Freedom, yet thy banner, torn, but flying streams like the thunder-storm against the wind.")
To: Ironfocus; Clive
ping
11
posted on
04/01/2004 10:55:50 AM PST
by
cyborg
(Frankenfreude radio death watch has commenced)
To: cyborg
These are bogus fairy circles, they are not circles at all!
To: Ironfocus
>> they are not circles at all! <<
Well, they sure as hell ain’t straight!
13
posted on
09/26/2023 7:59:18 AM PDT
by
dangus
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