What impact will today’s solar eclipse have on animals?Months ago, my cousin, who was traveling hundreds of miles to see it, said I should find out more. My wife recently told me that we need to keep the kids inside during it. Fancy Nancy, the lead character of the book I read to my six year old, warns against looking directly at it. And, this doesn’t even scratch the surface of the vast amount of information out there for humans. Indeed, there is nearly as much information on how the eclipse will affect humans and what we need to do to protect ourselves as there is about whether Jon Snow’s winter is here. While musing on this, it got me wondering about the impact of this solar show on animals, who don’t have the benefit of news alerts and protective glasses.[teaserbreak]
Searching on Google reveals a consensus that a “typical” solar eclipse can cause household pets to get confused. Birds, in particular, seem to react to what appears to be a very quick shift between day, night, and day again. But, today is a total solar eclipse. An eclipse on steroids, if you will. The next one with a visible effect on the U.S. doesn’t happen until 2024. So what do we know about the impact of this supersized sky spectacular on the animals around us?
I looked to NASA for some answers, because they probably do know a thing or two about space stuff (that’s a technical term). NASA says that in the “typical” eclipse, some animals change their behavior because they think twilight has arrived. For today, NASA suggests you observe the behavior of household pets and local wildlife. That’s it; nothing more. No real advice on how to protect animals during those dramatic few minutes. NASA isn’t alone. Other researchers admit a similar dearth of data. Will daytime birds return to their roosts? Will spiders take down their webs? When it’s over, and it appears as if it’s day again, will animals in the wild that hunt in the morning go on a hunt? We’ll have to wait and see…
There is a shortage of answers, but do we know one thing: we need to be woke on the full impact of environmental (or natural) phenomena, whether man made or otherwise. In other words, when the eclipse comes, don’t just think about how it impacts you. Think about how it impacts the other living beings who share this world with us. Much like climate change, we don’t yet (and perhaps never will) have all of the answers about the impact of this phenomenon on the animals around us.
At Born Free USA, our motto is “Keep wildlife in the wild.” But, in these days of shifting climates and skies, we need to care for the animals, too. And it starts with a better understanding of the consequences of natural phenomena (like today’s total solar eclipse) and man-made phenomena (like global warming). Remember to do your part to keep all living beings safe today—both human and animal.
Keep Wildlife in the Wild,
