Forests: Trees on Defense
Clip: Special | 1m 4sVideo has Closed Captions
Learn how trees defend themselves.
Trees have special ways to defend themselves against insects, even animals eating their leaves. Learn how trees “talk to each other.
Science Trek is a local public television program presented by IdahoPTV
Major Funding by the Laura Moore Cunningham Foundation and the Idaho National Laboratory. Additional Funding by Sparklight, the Friends of Idaho Public Television and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
Forests: Trees on Defense
Clip: Special | 1m 4sVideo has Closed Captions
Trees have special ways to defend themselves against insects, even animals eating their leaves. Learn how trees “talk to each other.
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Science Trek
Science Trek is a place where parents, kids, and educators can watch short, educational videos on a variety of science topics. Every Monday Science Trek releases a new video that introduces children to math, science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) career potentials in a fun, informative way.(SCIENCE TREK MUSIC) JOAN CARTAN-HANSEN, HOST: Trees are sometimes under attack, and they have some creative ways to defend themselves.
The bark beetle is about the size of a grain of rice.
But these bugs have killed thousands of acres of forests.
But pine trees do try to fight back.
When being infested with a bark beetle, a tree will release a sticky, bitter substance called pitch.
The beetles get stuck in the pitch and die.
And the scent of pitch drift to other nearby trees.
That alerts them to start producing pitch too.
And that protects them from bark beetles.
The umbrella thorn acacias tree uses a special defense when giraffes start to eat in its branches.
The tree pumps poison into its leaves.
A giraffe can munch for a while and then will have to move on to another tree.
But that first tree also releases a gas which prompts nearby trees to start pumping poison into their leaves as well.
So, giraffes have to move at least 100 yards away or move upwind to find a tree not already on alert.
For more information about forests, check out the Science Trek website.
You'll find it at ScienceTrek.org.
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Science Trek is a local public television program presented by IdahoPTV
Major Funding by the Laura Moore Cunningham Foundation and the Idaho National Laboratory. Additional Funding by Sparklight, the Friends of Idaho Public Television and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.