Researchers from the Instituto Politécnico de Bragança are launching a study into how birds and mammals react to a solar eclipse, with fieldwork centered in Montesinho Natural Park. The project is led by Paulo Cortez, who described the effort as a unique experience.
The study area sits on the border between Portugal and Spain, in the zone between Rio de Onor and Guadramil, where the eclipse will be total. In northeastern Trás-os-Montes, the celestial event begins on August 12 at 6:34 p.m. Total darkness will peak at 7:31 p.m., lasting 26 seconds, before the eclipse ends at 8:24 p.m. Across the rest of mainland Portugal, minimum visibility will reach 92 percent.
Sound and image equipment tracks animal behavior
To observe the animals, the scientists will use sound and image equipment. The work will span two days before the eclipse and two days after it, so that the data collected covers a solid period around the event.
Cortez said the aim is to understand whether animal behavior changes with the alignment of the Earth, moon and sun. Researchers will use sound equipment in particular to record whether there are changes in behavior, including in the calls or sounds animals make.
Beyond the local observation of birds and bats, the Montesinho fieldwork is part of a wider research effort that draws on satellite data, including on the behavior of wolves in Gerês and of lynxes.
Talk on wildlife and the eclipse
Cortez, a scientist at the Centro de Investigação de Montanha at the Instituto Politécnico de Bragança, will take part in a talk titled "Effect of the Total Solar Eclipse on Wildlife" the following Monday, from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m., at Casa da Seda, the Centro Ciência Viva in Bragança. That day also marks the first day of animal observation in Montesinho.
Portable planetarium sessions in Bragança
On the following Tuesday, Bragança will host 25-minute immersive sessions in a portable planetarium to help the public better understand a solar eclipse. The sessions will take place at the Pavilhão do Instituto Português do Desporto and are coordinated by Filipe Pires, director of the Planetário do Porto, part of the Centro Ciência Viva network.
