Are you bewildered by TikTok videos of trees moving by themselves fast and thought someone better get to the ROOT of this problem?
Jokes apart! Trees move by themselves, unlike what you see in those viral videos.
Here are trees moving by themselves, explained! Read to know more.
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What Does It Mean When a Tree Moves On its Own?
Trees moving by themselves fast is a natural phenomenon that may occur for many reasons.
However, trees cannot move by themselves like humans do because they lack the physical ability to do so.
So, what does it mean when trees start moving by themselves?
The answer is simple! They are primarily affected by external factors and internal growth processes.
1. Natural growth
Trees grow over time, as do their roots, which keep changing shape and position enough to shift the soil.
The natural growth is enough to push the tree from one place to another, but only a short distance in years.
2. Gravitropism and Phototropism
Trees exhibit growth responses to gravity (gravitropism) and light (phototropism), causing a change in their orientation and sometimes a slight shift from their original position.
The speed at which trees grow or move is relatively slow and occurs over years and decades.
3. External Factors
Natural phenomena like earthquakes, floods, and landslides are enough to move a tree from one place to another.
In fact, you will see rapid movement of trees from the soil moving too quickly, which may give an impression of running trees.
The closest tree to the one seen in the viral videos is Socratea exorrhiza, a palm native to South America that walks from shade to sunlight by growing roots in its desired direction.
However, they do not rush towards the direction but move about 2-3 cm per day (20 meters per year) to adjust their lighting requirement.
Remember, a tree moving through the ground is a natural yet slow and gradual process.
Are Trees Moving on Their Own Real or Fake?
The one seen in the TikTok of the moving trees, which has amassed thousands of views, looks like a smartly edited video.
The first clip looks like loggers cutting the tree and taking it away, giving an impression of a walking tree when seen from the top. Other clips look like a gradual shift caused by flooding.
However, one exciting clip with a tree shifting through the ground could be a fake.
Peter Vrsansky, a palaeobiologist from the Earth Science Institute of the Slovak Academy, claimed to have personally witnessed a tree reaching up to 20 meters.
Although he calls it a natural phenomenon caused by soil erosion, it is yet to be verified.
Is There Any Walking Trees Conspiracy?
There is no conspiracy of walking trees that we know about.
The one seen in the video is probably a fake. However, you will always find some conspiracists claiming it to be the government or some secret military experiment.
We would rather say, believe what you see with your own eyes!
From Editorial Team
Conclusion!
While trees exhibit some forms of movement, they do not experience rapid movement.
The movement they do display occurs over long periods and is typically very slow.
Therefore, the walking trees caught moving would make an excellent movie plot but hardly a real-life fact!
