What do animals do just before an eruption? Have volcanologists noticed or recorded how the actions of animals change before an eruption? Is there something that has been learned that we can use to help predict an eruption by animals' actions?

rocky Sue Ferrell

Dear Sue,

You ask some good questions. I do not know of any reports of changes in animal behavior prior to eruptions. Note some of their reactions may be to small earthquakes that often precede eruptions but that could still be useful. Some scientists have tried to link animal behavior and earthquakes but their work is not widely accepted. Much was learned about how animals behave during and after eruption at Mount St. Helens.

Steve Mattox, University of North Dakota 

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