--- title: How Animals and Nature React to an Eclipse description: As the sun vanishes, the planet and its creatures are transformed. canonical: https://time.com/6958452/how-animals-nature-react-solar-eclipse/ author: Jeffrey Kluger article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2024-03-25T14:07:49.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:50:31.159Z article:section: Science og:title: How Animals and Nature React to an Eclipse og:description: As the sun vanishes, the planet and its creatures are transformed. og:url: https://time.com/6958452/how-animals-nature-react-solar-eclipse/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt461b12fe4151e118/698a54f0b21a9cf650509ca4/GettyImages-1724509432.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 4500 og:image:height: 2531 og:image:alt: Annular Solar Eclipse in Mexico City og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: How Animals and Nature React to an Eclipse twitter:description: As the sun vanishes, the planet and its creatures are transformed. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt461b12fe4151e118/698a54f0b21a9cf650509ca4/GettyImages-1724509432.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # How Animals and Nature React to an Eclipse > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME Future Proof: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition Future Proof is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Making sense of the climate and energy economy. Future Proof examines the forces transforming energy and climate, and what those changes mean for business, technology, policy and the global economy. Senior correspondent Justin Worland goes beyond traditional climate coverage to connect the energy transition to the bigger decisions reshaping companies, markets and society. 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Future Proof is TIME's weekly climate and energy newsletter, written by senior correspondent Justin Worland. It connects the energy transition to the decisions reshaping business, technology, policy and markets. #### Where can I follow the energy transition as a business story? Future Proof covers climate and energy as an economic and business story rather than only an environmental one. It publishes every Friday and is free at time.com/newsletters. #### Who writes Future Proof? Justin Worland, a senior correspondent at TIME and an award-winning climate journalist, writes Future Proof. #### Is Future Proof free? Yes. Future Proof is free at time.com/newsletters. ## Video: 2024 U.S. Total Eclipse Explained [Watch (HLS stream): 2024 U.S. Total Eclipse Explained](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/MOMY0Lpx.m3u8) (2:13)  _Published 2024-02-27. A rare total solar eclipse will occur across Mexico, the U.S., and Canada on April 8, 2024, when the moon will pass between the Earth and the Sun, blocking the sun’s rays during the day time, causing a temporary period of darkness. TIME Editor-at-Large Jeffrey Kluger explains the best way to experience it._  by [Jeffrey Kluger](https://time.com/author/jeffrey-kluger/)  ## Jeffrey Kluger Editor at Large Mar 25, 2024 2:07 PM UTC  A dog wearing sunglasses with safety lenses is seen during an annular eclipse on Oct. 14, 2023. A dog wearing sunglasses with safety lenses is seen during an annular eclipse on Oct. 14, 2023. Anadolu—Getty Images  by [Jeffrey Kluger](https://time.com/author/jeffrey-kluger/)  ## Jeffrey Kluger Editor at Large Mar 25, 2024 2:07 PM UTC Of all of the animals worth observing during a total solar eclipse, some of the most intriguing are humans. They stop what they’re doing; they stare skyward; they lower their voices to a hush. Some may gather their young close. Some may even shed tears. If you’ve ever witnessed a solar eclipse yourself, none of this comes as a surprise; indeed, you’ve surely exhibited some of these behaviors too. Other species of animals display other kinds of behavioral changes, as the weather and lighting and nature itself seem to turn on their axes. So what should you expect to experience on April 8, as a total eclipse crosses the U.S. from the southwestern edge of Texas to the northern tip of New England? Some of the greatest changes will occur far above us, in the ionosphere, the band of atmosphere that ranges from [an altitude](https://www.noaa.gov/jetstream/ionosphere-max#:~:text=The%20ionosphere%20is%20located%20within,layers%2C%20then%20recombines%20at%20night.) of 60 to 300 km (37 to 190 mi.). Defined by the abundant presence of electrically charged particles, or ions, the ionosphere is denser during the day, turbocharged by incoming radiation from the sun. As [NASA explains](https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/news/2370/the-impact-of-solar-eclipses-on-the-structure-and-dynamics-of-earths-upper-atmosphere/#:~:text=During%20a%20solar%20eclipse%2C%20the,of%20electrons%20in%20the%20ionosphere.), that means that during an eclipse, the overall concentration of ions in the ionosphere falls. This reduction can lead to a cooling of the upper atmosphere, which in turn can cause local depletions known as “ionospheric holes.” That has an impact on populations on the ground as those cavities may disrupt the transmission of radio signals and lead to anomalies in GPS navigation systems. As researchers at Embry-Riddle University and Clemson University [determined](https://news.erau.edu/news-briefs/gps-signals-mostly-unaffected-by-solar-eclipse-research-shows) after the 2017 total eclipse, however, in most cases the GPS disruption is transitory and too mild for users to notice. **Read More**: [_How Cities Around the U.S. Are Celebrating the Eclipse_](https://time.com/6958432/how-us-cities-celebrate-solar-eclipse/) Other natural changes are more universally detectable, not least the steady dimming of sunlight. The arc of totality across North America measures just 185-km (115 mi.) wide. In this band, a sort of deep dusk descends, with a much subtler darkening the farther you move from that central point. In 2017, a team from TIME [traveled to Casper, Wyo](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oo%5FgzW84AXY). to record and report that year’s eclipse from a hillside overlooking the bowl of the city. Streetlights and headlights flicked on as the sunlight rapidly retreated. If you’re outside during totality, it may pay to have a sweater or a jacket with you. Temperatures can drop by anywhere from 2.8°C to 8.4°C (5°F to 15° F) as the sunlight retreats, [according to the Weather Channel](https://weather.com/science/weather-explainers/news/2024-03-08-total-solar-eclipse-weather). Falling temperatures near the earth’s surface also may cause what’s known as an “eclipse wind,” or a slowing of the winds. That’s the result of low-level air becoming cooler than the higher level air above it—what’s known as a [temperature inversion](https://wxguys.ssec.wisc.edu/2013/11/18/why-does-the-wind-diminish-after-sunset/)—which makes it harder for that more-elevated atmosphere to mix with the air closer to the ground, eliminating the temperature and density differences that lead to breezes and gusts. As totality ends, the winds pick back up. Another effect falling temperatures may have will be the appearance of a fleeting thunderstorm, as cooler air closer to the ground [pushes warmer more humid air upward](https://www.khou.com/article/news/local/eclipse-enhanced-thunderstorms/285-458484250), where moisture then condenses and rains out. The process is similar to the way ocean breezes can cause brief storms in the summer. **Read More**: [_The ‘Devil Comet’ Will Be a Heavenly Co-Star During the Eclipse. Here’s What to Know_](https://time.com/6958713/devil-comet-solar-eclipse-2024/) All of this affects non-human animals in multiple ways. Insects, bats, and birds that feed at night emerge as the sky darkens, sometimes in sufficient numbers to be detectable on radar, [says the Weather Channel](https://weather.com/science/weather-explainers/news/2024-03-08-total-solar-eclipse-weather). Birdsong tends to grow quieter as darkness descends, rising back up as the light reappears. Crows, gulls, and sparrows that are in flight [have been observed](https://scholar.google.com/scholar%5Flookup?journal=Turk.+J.+Vet.+Anim.+Sci.&title=The+effects+of+a+solar+eclipse+on+animals+behavior&author=O.+Ozbey&author=M.H.+Aysondu&author=H.+Ozer&author=U.G.+Simsek&volume=28&publication%5Fyear=2004&pages=55-61&) alighting on trees or on the ground and silencing any chirps, calls, or caws. Dogs may cower or exhibit other fearful behavior. Bees may return to their hives and domestic horses and cows may move to their stables, [reports](https://news.iu.edu/live/news/31916-unlocking-the-mysteries-of-animal-behavior-during) Liz Aguilar, a PhD candidate in biology in the University of Indiana's [evolution, ecology, and behavior program](https://biology.indiana.edu/graduate/evolution-ecology-behavior/index.html?%5Fgl=1%2A139tgeu%2A%5Fga%2ANDA0MjU2NjcyLjE3MTAxNzY5MDQ.%2A%5Fga%5F61CH0D2DQW%2AMTcxMDE3NjkwMy4xLjEuMTcxMDE3NzE0NS4zNC4wLjA.&%5Fga=2.229104348.1776624266.1710176904-404256672.1710176904). In wild herds or in distant paddocks away from their barns, [horses may also](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7222787/) cluster and begin shaking their heads and tails—though it’s not entirely clear why they engage in these movements. Head-shaking and tail-swishing are far more common as an agitated response to flies, or to resistance to or discomfort from being ridden. So-called “[photic head-shaking](https://ker.com/equinews/head-shaking-may-variety-causes/)” actually occurs when horses are exposed to bright sunlight—precisely the opposite to what happens during an eclipse. In [a 2020 paper](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7222787/) in the journal _Animals_, researchers observed both domesticated and zoo animals and recorded a range of eclipse-related behaviors. The cowering and other expressions of anxiety seen in dogs were also observed in baboons, gorillas, giraffes, and flamingos, as well as in parrots and other species of [lorikeets](https://www.britannica.com/animal/lorikeet). Tortoises, Komodo dragons, and other forms of reptiles, which already may be lying largely unmoving in the sun, grow more stationary still. **Read More**: [_How to Use Your Smartphone to Take Photos of the Solar Eclipse_](https://time.com/6961530/how-to-photograph-solar-eclipse-smartphone/) Perhaps most striking though, was the behavior of a captive troop of chimpanzees at the Yerkes Primate Research Center on the campus of Emory University in Georgia, during an [annular eclipse on May 30, 1984](https://www.weather.gov/ilm/1984eclipse). As researchers [reported](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31979439/) in the _American Journal of Primatology_, the animals moved to the highest point of a climbing structure in their enclosure and turned their faces upward in the direction of the sun and the moon. One juvenile gestured toward the slowly vanishing sun. The chimps remained that way until the skies began to brighten, when they descended from the structure. No one can ever say with certainty how they were experiencing what they were seeing—whether they felt their own form of curiosity or wonder or even reverence. Clearly, though, they were captivated by it all. It is a reaction that is very much of a piece with what humans feel—one we may share with untold numbers of other species as the great solar sky show unfolds. ## Transcript Total eclipses occur when the moon passes directly between the Earth and the Sun blocking solar light since 1900 only 12 have touch the US Mainland most of them only glancingly on average a total solar eclipse will happen where you live only once every 375 years. Why are they so rare? Well, the sun is about 400 times larger than the moon but the sun is also 400 times farther away. So the two bodies appear about the same size to us on the moon orbits the earth once each month. So why doesn't it Shadow touch the Earth causing an eclipse with each pass? Partly because the moon's orbit is tilted slightly which causes its shadow to miss the Earth most of the time but it's also because the moon's orbit is elliptical for much of its path. The Moon is farther away from Earth and appears too small to block out the sun completely those eclipses are called annular. Only when the eclipse occurs at the moon's closest approach is a total eclipse possible, even then the narrow band of totality usually tracks over water or away from population centers. That's why this eclipse on April 8th is so special as it crosses the Texas border at about 1:27 p.m. Local time sitting closest to the center of the path like Waco Cleveland and buffalo could witness up for 4 minutes or more of darkness in all 31 million us residents live in the path of the eclipse. Even if you don't live in the path of totality most of the US will experience some level of Darkness. 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