Research shows that plants “scream” when they are cut or under severe stress.

Death is the end point for all living beings, and even floorsthey are so afraid for her that they scream as a sign of stress.

This is the conclusion reached by researchers from Tel Aviv University in Israel, who, in a study published in the journal Cell Point out that plant species make different sounds in certain situations.

scream to live

Scientists from the School of Plant Science and Food Safety selected tomato and tobacco plants for analysis.

He introduced floors to dry conditions and even cut off the leaves. For this, a recording center with an acoustic camera was set up in the greenhouse, so that the sound sample could be captured as cleanly as possible.

The recording was made 10 centimeters around each plant using ultrasonic microphones capable of recording at frequencies of 20-150 kHz.

According to the researchers, the captured sounds were similar to clicks, such as “the popping of popcorn.” Sounds were emitted with a volume similar to human speech, but at frequencies up to 80 kilohertz, so people do not hear them.

Responsible scientists postulate that these sounds may be caused by air bubbles in the vascular system of plants, although they are not entirely sure if they have any specific purpose, such as an attempt to communicate with other organisms.

“It is possible that other organisms could have evolved to hear these sounds and respond to them. For example, a butterfly trying to lay its eggs on a plant, or an animal trying to eat plant they could use sounds to make decisions,” says Lilah Hadani, co-author of the study.

agricultural purposes

Sound recordings of this floors they can be used in agricultural irrigation systems to control the hydration status of crops and distribute water more efficiently.

“These results could change the way we think about the plant kingdom, which until now has been considered almost silent,” the study authors write.

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