Honey bees go totally silent during an ecilpse??!! (camera, light)
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Its almost like we dont even care about the great mysteries of the natural world anymore, heck I remember this last eclipse, I was out working during it and besides a handful of people, who did stop to take notice and/or made some remarks about it, the large majority of people just went on about their day and didnt even stop to look at it! Crazy!
Eclipses aren't mysteries at all, much less great ones.
As for bees, isn't it rather obvious? They're active during daytime, inactive during nighttime. To this end, they've developed a reaction to begin their workdays - when the sun is out. This is a very basic adaptation. Of course, since eclipses are both extremely rare in any given location, there has never been an evolutionary driver to for bees to adapt to them. And since they're so fleeting anyway, it would be pointless.
Eclipses aren't mysteries at all, much less great ones.
Came to say this. This is no GREAT mystery. It's not mysterious at all. Bees are quiet at night. Lost of animals or because its generally quieter at night so they won't be heard by predators.
And of you think people don't care about an eclipse you haven't been at ground zero for one.
Anyone else feel like yawning at the subject of this thread?
Eclipses are rather brief in any given year, and most people don't hang out around honey bees. So how can the combination of these two, and any supposed side-effects, be significant to our daily living?
Sure, I might see an ant do a side-step when I walking by it on the side walk, but that's not going to be anything revolutionary.
It's getting harder to understand people, even those out on the fringes. That's scarier than what bees are doing during eclipses, or during rain showers or fog...
Anyone else feel like yawning at the subject of this thread?
Eclipses are rather brief in any given year, and most people don't hang out around honey bees. So how can the combination of these two, and any supposed side-effects, be significant to our daily living?
Sure, I might see an ant do a side-step when I walking by it on the side walk, but that's not going to be anything revolutionary.
It's getting harder to understand people, even those out on the fringes. That's scarier than what bees are doing during eclipses, or during rain showers or fog...
Well, I know a handful of people that have bee colonies, they are very interesting actually.
Came to say this. This is no GREAT mystery. It's not mysterious at all. Bees are quiet at night. Lost of animals or because its generally quieter at night so they won't be heard by predators.
And of you think people don't care about an eclipse you haven't been at ground zero for one.
The last 'major' eclipse we had, the sun was out, it was actually very bright that day, the only difference was, it looked ' a little strange', it was still bright outside though, objects still cast shadows, there was still glare from sunlight, etc.
The last 'major' eclipse we had, the sun was out, it was actually very bright that day, the only difference was, it looked ' a little strange', it was still bright outside though, objects still cast shadows, there was still glare from sunlight, etc.
I saw the eclipse, not so long ago. As for bees, and other creatures, it doesn't have to be night to affect things. It's about the difference between light and dark. If the sky starts getting darker, they settle down. Same thing for a good number of other animals. Poultry start to bed down thinking it must be close to night, time to bed down and go to sleep, only to have it start to get light again. Cats have nocturnal abilities. I have several cats. They all seemed confused, and came running over to me, meowing and climbing up on my lap so safety or reassurance. We were somewhat close to the Zone of Totality but a bit south. It got pretty dark, but I could see off in the horizon farther south that it was lighter there than it was above me. Still, when a total eclipse occurs, animals respond accordingly, thinking it's somehow becoming night. They weren't looking at the horizon, but even if they had, I don't think it would mean anything to them. Right here, it looks like twilight. Not pitch black, but significantly dark.
This was the second total eclipse I've seen. The first one (back in the 70s I think) was really weird as the increasing darkness seemed like it was getting darker in waves. I think that was due to eye blinking though. I didn't notice anything like that during this last eclipse. But during the earlier eclipse, I had goats, chickens and turkeys. They all started bedding down as it got darker. Birds were flying to perch in trees. Dogs were barking.
Exactly how bright it might have looked to you, depends on where you were in the eclipse path. If you were right in the middle, it would be much darker.
I saw the eclipse, not so long ago. As for bees, and other creatures, it doesn't have to be night to affect things. It's about the difference between light and dark. If the sky starts getting darker, they settle down. Same thing for a good number of other animals. Poultry start to bed down thinking it must be close to night, time to bed down and go to sleep, only to have it start to get light again. Cats have nocturnal abilities. I have several cats. They all seemed confused, and came running over to me, meowing and climbing up on my lap so safety or reassurance. We were somewhat close to the Zone of Totality but a bit south. It got pretty dark, but I could see off in the horizon farther south that it was lighter there than it was above me. Still, when a total eclipse occurs, animals respond accordingly, thinking it's somehow becoming night. They weren't looking at the horizon, but even if they had, I don't think it would mean anything to them. Right here, it looks like twilight. Not pitch black, but significantly dark.
This was the second total eclipse I've seen. The first one (back in the 70s I think) was really weird as the increasing darkness seemed like it was getting darker in waves. I think that was due to eye blinking though. I didn't notice anything like that during this last eclipse. But during the earlier eclipse, I had goats, chickens and turkeys. They all started bedding down as it got darker. Birds were flying to perch in trees. Dogs were barking.
Exactly how bright it might have looked to you, depends on where you were in the eclipse path. If you were right in the middle, it would be much darker.
I forget the town, but during that last major eclipse, lots of people were traveling to this spot, just to be in the best 'zone', I watched the news coverage of it, it didnt get anything close to being dark, it was the same as it was in my area, it was still bright outside, shadows were being cast, glare from the sun could be seen, it was NOTHING like they said it was going to be.
Everyone I talked to after the eclipse were pretty disappointed, it had been hyped up to be something really incredible, but it turned out to be a big bust.
I forget the town, but during that last major eclipse, lots of people were traveling to this spot, just to be in the best 'zone', I watched the news coverage of it, it didnt get anything close to being dark, it was the same as it was in my area, it was still bright outside, shadows were being cast, glare from the sun could be seen, it was NOTHING like they said it was going to be.
Everyone I talked to after the eclipse were pretty disappointed, it had been hyped up to be something really incredible, but it turned out to be a big bust.
I took some photos of it. My camera wasn't the best for that. Most of the pictures were a mess with glaring rays. But I did get one that was pretty good when the moon was about halfway across the sun (click image to enlarge it). As luck would have it, the camera battery went out. All that trouble getting prepared for the event and I forgot to recharge the battery.
The path of totality is about 70 miles wide. When the sun was completely covered where I was located, it got dark, except for the band of light along the horizon much farther south. All the street lights and yard lights in the neighborhood automatically turned on. A few stars could be seen. There was no disappointment heard from people, rather a lot of whooping, cheers, ouuu's and ahhh's during the totality.
In looking at reports of those in the exact center of the path, the length of time of totality varied up to about 2 or 3 minutes down to one minute or less. Where I was though, I'd guess it was maybe around 2 minutes. And the farther a person is from the exact center of the path, the shorter the time of darkness. Even in the exact center of the path at the time of totality, there's still a lot going on. At the so-called "diamond ring" effect before and after totality, shadows on the ground can be seen at that moment during that last (or first) gasp of direct sunlight that reaches us. Even with the sun completely covered, you can see indirect sunlight from the "halo" around the moon. So it's not pitch black darkness, although it was considerably dark. I couldn't see any shadows, except for perhaps those cast from street lights and yard lights. There aren't many outdoor lights where I live. But looking at trees and things that were not directly exposed to lights, there were no shadows. I also noticed that my cats were going crazy, and birds in the sky were heading for trees to roost in. It's worth keeping in mind that the entire event, when the sun is completely covered by the moon, doesn't last a long time.
I too have heard of some people complaining that the eclipse was no big deal or that it wasn't what they expected. I'm not certain what they were expecting. I'm guessing they expected it to be pitch black out. It was very dark, but not the same kind of darkness as seen at night. In addition, lights that automatically turn on, can also reduce the amount of darkness.
On a personal note, I was struck by the thought of what ancient people must've thought when an eclipse occurred. I can understand how they must've thought it was an omen of evil or doom. I can understand how people might have thought the sun was being swallowed by a great dragon. It must've been a fearful event for people who had no understanding of what was actually going on.
As I mentioned, this was the second time I've seen a total eclipse, amazingly in the same area. That said, I've also seen a few partial eclipses. Partial eclipses are interesting to see, but aren't quite as spectacular as a total eclipse.
It got dark enough that my camera picked up the planet Mercury, off a few degrees from the sun. Dark enough for me. Difference in darkness levels may relate to how many clouds and how much moisture in the air could refract light into the total eclipse zone.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Difference in darkness levels may relate to how many clouds and how much moisture in the air could refract light into the total eclipse zone.
