An ongoing collaboration between Tel Aviv University’s zoology and plant sciences departments has led to what is believed to be the first study in the world to demonstrate auditory communication between animals and plants, finding that insects both hear sounds made by plants and take them into account in decision-making.

Two years ago, Prof. Yossi Yovel from the School of Zoology and Prof. Lilach Hadany from the School of Plant Sciences and Food Security recorded plants ‘talking’ for the first time.

They were able to demonstrate that plants emit clicks similar to popcorn popping — one click per hour in the case of a healthy, well-watered plant, and dozens of clicks under conditions of stress, such as drying soil.

The next question was: Who might be listening?

It was already known that moths had the ability to hear ultrasonic sounds beyond the hearing range of the human ear. During mating, male moths emit such sounds at a frequency similar to plants.

In the latest research published in eLife, the teams demonstrated that female moths preferred quiet, healthy plants on which to lay their eggs, rather than noisy ones that emitted distress signals.

Students Rya Seltzer and Guy Zer Eshel led the experiments in Yovel........

© The Times of Israel