Trees with “Crown Shyness” Mysteriously Avoid Touching Each Other

Crown Shyness Tree Photography Tree Canopy

Photo: Dag Peak

If you look up toward certain types of towering trees—including eucalyptus, Sitka spruce, and Japanese larch—you may notice a unique phenomenon: the uppermost branches don't touch. Known as “crown shyness,” this natural occurrence results in rupture-like patterns in the forest canopy that seem to perfectly outline the trees' striking silhouettes.

Since scientists first started studying the topic in the 1920s, crown shyness has been observed between trees of the same and different species in locations across the globe. Regardless of tree type or environment, crown shyness appears to always culminate in the same aesthetic, characterized by gaps that resemble meandering channels, zig-zagging cracks, and winding rivers.

While no one is quite sure why certain trees exhibit this unique behavior, several hypotheses have been presented by numerous scientists. One possibility is that it occurs when the branches of trees (particularly those in areas with high winds) bump into each other. Another suggested explanation is that it enables the perennial plants to receive optimal light for photosynthesis. Perhaps the most prominent theory, however, is that the gaps prevent the proliferation of invasive insects.

Whatever the reason is behind this fascinating treetop trend, one thing is clear: crown shyness is one photogenic phenomenon!

Crown shyness, a naturally occurring phenomenon, results in crack-like gaps in the tree canopy.

Crown Shyness Tree Photography Tree Canopy

Photo: Patrice78500 (Own work) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Crown Shyness Tree Photography Tree Canopy

Photo: Mikenorton (Own work), via Wikimedia Commons

h/t: [Colossal, Kottke]

My Modern Met granted permission to use photo by Samuel COUNIL and Lavanya Prakash.

Related Articles:

Looking Up At Towering Trees

Poland’s Mysterious “Crooked Forest” Populated with 400 Bent Pine Trees

The Beautiful Windswept Trees of Slope Point

Kelly Richman-Abdou

Kelly Richman-Abdou is a Contributing Writer at My Modern Met. An art historian living in Paris, Kelly was born and raised in San Francisco and holds a BA in Art History from the University of San Francisco and an MA in Art and Museum Studies from Georgetown University. When she’s not writing, you can find Kelly wandering around Paris, whether she’s leading a tour (as a guide, she has been interviewed by BBC World News America and France 24) or simply taking a stroll with her husband and two tiny daughters.
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