Oct 21, 2015
Crown shyness
What an interesting word. :D
“Crown shyness is a phenomenon observed in some tree species, in which the crowns of fully stocked trees do not touch each other, forming a canopy with channel-like gaps.“
How do the trees know not to touch each other?
Nobody knows though it’s been studied since the 1920′s.
Depending on the ground nutrients, allowing sunlight to hit the ground can be very important in the life of big forest trees. If the canopies are too thick, not enough light will go through, and low height vegetation won’t be able to grow under their canopies.
This doesn’t explain how the tree canopies come to not touch, but demonstrates an evolutionary pressure that could instigate the development of this behavior.
