Crop circle

Crop circles are areas of cereal or similar crops that have been systematically flattened to form various geometric patterns. The phenomenon itself only entered the public imagination in its current form after the notable appearances in England in the late 1970s. People who study crop circle phenomena sometimes humorously call themselves "cerealogists".

Related Topics:
Cereal - Crop - Geometric - England - 1970s

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In an unrelated phenomenon, fungal circles formed by a spreading mycelium are familiar, though on a much smaller scale. Older, larger fungal circles are not recognized when they have broken into arcs or patches. In Scandinavia and in Britain, the phenomenon of mushrooms or puffballs forming circles in a patch of meadow or pasture was referred to in folklore as älvringar, pixie circles or elf circles, and was attributed by countryfolk to mystical forces. This phenomenon is both commonplace and much smaller in scale, however, and is recognizedhttp://plantclinic.cornell.edu/FactSheets/fairyring/fairyring.htm as the natural growth of fungus colonies.

Related Topics:
Mycelium - Scandinavia - Britain - Mushroom - Puffball - Pixie circle - Fungus

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