UNIT 5. READING ACTIVITIES
0. DO TREES COMMUNICATE WITH EACH OTHER?
Research and add a comment. Big old trees - dubbed 'mother trees' - are hubs in a mycorrhizal fungal network (Source: Smileus/iStockphoto) Surprisingly, the answer is yes. They might seem like the strong, tall and silent type, but trees actually communicate with each other. Forest ecologist Dr Suzanne Simard, from the University of British Colombia , studies a type of fungi that forms underground communication networks between trees in North American forests. Big old trees — dubbed 'mother trees' — are hubs in this mycorrhizal fungal network, playing a key role in supporting other trees in the forest, especially their offspring. "If you're a mother and you have children, you recognise your children and you treat them in certain ways. We're finding that trees will do the same thing. They'll adjust their competitive behaviour to make room for their own kin and they send those signals through mycorrhizal networks," says Simard....
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