Experts expect to see changes in animals’ and insects’ behavior in the upcoming eclipse. Bloomington is in the path of totality; this means it will get completely dark for about four minutes.
Liz Aguilar, an Indiana University graduate student in the Evolution, Ecology and Behavior program, said as we approach totality, we might hear crickets chirping.
“After the eclipse, it might not get back up to normal levels that it was before totality happened,” she said. “It might take longer to approach that normal baseline sound in the environment. I could see that being the case with behavior of animals too.”
Nocturnal animals, such as bats, may think they have overslept when they wake up to darkness. Some spider species may begin to take down their webs as it gets darker, and then begin to rebuild them again after the eclipse is over.
Liz Aguilar, an Indiana University graduate student in the Evolution, Ecology and Behavior program, said as it gets darker during totality, birds may go into trees to roost like they usually do at night. (Devan Ridgway, WTIU)
Aguilar said it is unlikely that dogs and cats will even look at the sun during the eclipse, as they don’t normally look at it anyway. Though as we near total coverage of the sun and enter a twilight zone, dogs may get anxious.
“Sometimes animals perceive that as an oncoming storm, like dark clouds,” Aguilar said. “But our pet should be able to know better than to look up at the at the sun and harm themselves that way.”
Emily Kerr, behavior and outreach coordinator for the City of Bloomington Animal Care and Control, said dogs may be more impacted by the large crowds rather than the eclipse itself.
“What we're anticipating is larger crowds of people and that being the true disrupter,” Kerr said. “They [dogs] might be a little more disoriented.”
The change in temperature as it gets darker should not impact wildlife too much either, Kerr said. A study shows that during the last eclipse, the air temperature decreased by about 4.5 degrees Celsius.
“In the Midwest, our temperatures fluctuate so much from day to day that I wouldn't really anticipate that having much of an impact on them,” she said.
Emily Kerr, behavior and outreach coordinator for the City of Bloomington Animal Care and Control, said the change in temperature during the eclipse should not impact animals. (Zoom)
Alex Jahn, research scientist in the IU biology department, said the timing of the eclipse coincides with birds’ spring migration. Since birds rely on the sun to time their activities and navigation, Jahn speculates the temporary loss of light might impact their migratory behavior.
“For example, a bird that migrates at night may be temporarily 'tricked' by the eclipse into thinking that night is approaching and would begin preparing itself to migrate,” Jahn said. “They may form flocks during the eclipse if they usually migrate in flocks.”
Aguilar said past projects have demonstrated that birds may go into trees to roost as they would do at night or go to their nests to sleep. She also expects changes in birds’ vocalizations. Aguilar is developing an app called Solar Bird to track changes in birds’ behavior.
“The goal is to have community members be a scientist,” she said. “During that day, they can help enhance experience of the eclipse to submit observations of bird behavior before, during and after totality.”
People might see squirrels foraging less or going into trees as it gets darker. Since campus is usually crowded anyway, the influx of people coming will not impact squirrels as much.
“I would expect especially these squirrels on campus that are not afraid of humans really like looking out for attention,” Aguilar said.
Similarly, deer may come out to forage during the dusk period as part of their normal nighttime routine, Aguilar said.
“That's something also potentially helpful to keep in mind with influx of people driving, to think about the potential to see deer out earlier in the day than usual,” she said.
Aguilar said she is curious to see if four minutes of darkness is truly enough to shift animals’ internal clocks and for how long. Based on anecdotal evidence, some animals, such as chickens, go back to their coop to sleep, and then come out when the sun comes out as if it were a new day. A rooster may even crow, or sound their morning call, to signal a new day.
