Furry instincts

When crickets stop chirping, it’s time to run: 10 animal early warnings

Image: Zoltan Fekeshazy

Long before radar and satellites, animals have relied on their sensory superpowers to detect natural disasters. From elephants hearing through the ground to ants reacting to tremors and storms in advance, many creatures exhibit behaviors that hint at impending doom—often hours or even days before it hits. Here's a list of 10 real ways animals are believed to detect and respond to natural disasters.

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Elephants can detect low-frequency seismic vibrations through their feet, known as infrasound. These sounds travel great distances through the ground, giving elephants an early warning system for earthquakes.

Field studies in Sri Lanka and Thailand have recorded elephants moving to higher ground hours before tsunamis and quakes.

Image: Chewy

Dogs often display signs of anxiety—pacing, whining, hiding—before storms or earthquakes. In some cases, they have even alerted owners to seizures or cardiac events.

Their acute sense of smell and hearing allows them to detect subtle changes in barometric pressure and even the scent of ozone that precedes a thunderstorm. In quake-prone areas, dogs have been reported barking frantically seconds before tremors strike.

Image: Alexandre Boucey

Sharks can detect shifts in barometric pressure, allowing them to dive deeper before hurricanes strike.

In 2001, tagged bonnethead sharks in Florida were observed diving rapidly in response to Hurricane Gabrielle’s approach. Their pressure-sensitive lateral lines function like an early-warning system for dangerous storms.

Image: Prince Patel

Ants have been observed to alter their foraging behavior and nest structure before earthquakes. Scientists believe they react to changes in soil gases and vibrations.

In addition to earthquakes, ants can also detect approaching storms. Changes in barometric pressure and humidity can cause ants to become more active or retreat deeper into their nests.

Image: Mohamed Fsili

As one would expect, birds are highly responsive to changes in air pressure. Many species change flight paths or stop migrating if a storm is coming.

In 2014, golden-winged warblers abruptly left Tennessee days before a deadly tornado outbreak, only returning after the threat passed. GPS trackers on some of the birds confirmed the sudden 900-mile round-trip escape.

Image: Geoff Brooks

Fish have been recorded jumping out of the water just before earthquakes, possibly reacting to pressure or specific chemical changes.

In Japan, koi and eels exhibited panic-like thrashing and leaping before the 2011 Tōhoku quake. Researchers suggest their specialized senses can detect subtle pressure waves or dissolved gas anomalies in water.

Image: Michelle Gordon

Rats often leave urban areas en masse before major flooding events. Sewer vibrations or scent cues may warn them of the incoming danger.

In India and Bangladesh, mass rat migration has historically preceded flash floods. Their survival relies on quickly identifying danger zones, and some believe their whiskers help detect water movement and even vibrations deep underground.

Image: Peter Fogden

Dolphins may be able to detect algal blooms (red tides) from miles away and often swim clear of affected areas.

Scientists believe their acute echolocation could help them sense chemical changes or detect developing dead zones. In Florida, dolphins have been observed avoiding regions impacted by Karenia brevis blooms long before any visible changes appear in the water.

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Frogs may alter their calls ahead of seismic activity, responding to low-frequency vibrations.

Researchers in Japan recorded changes in frog croaking patterns in the days before the 2011 quake. The frogs emitted less frequent and lower-pitched calls, suggesting discomfort from environmental shifts.

Image: William Warby

Crickets often go silent ahead of disasters. This curious behavior may be linked to their sensitivity to ground vibrations and air pressure changes.

Studies in Indonesia noted decreased cricket chirping before tsunamis. The silence has been proposed as a natural indicator, potentially tied to shifts in humidity or ground tension.

Decades and decades of seasons

What are DOOL, GH, or SNL? Exploring some emblems of American TV

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DOOL, GH, SNL. Some shows have been running for so long that we know them by their initials. Some have been watched by multiple generations while retaining their legendary hosts or stars over the decades. From fictional daytime dramas to animated families and revolutionary reality shows, let’s explore the productions that have remained uninterruptedly in our living rooms and continue to make history!

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General Hospital holds the Guinness World Record as the longest-running American soap opera in production. Very few fictional shows in the history of television have printed script after script for as many decades. GH premiered in April 1963, which means it has already been running for 61 years.

This daytime soap opera set in the imaginary Port Charles, New York, was created by the husband-and-wife duo Frank and Doris Hursley. The ABC show famously featured the actress Rachel Ames playing Audrey March Hardy for 43 years. The show reached its peak popularity in the 80s, and in 1981, it had 30 million viewers for super-couple Luke and Laura’s wedding, the highest-rated hour in American soap opera history.

Image: Aron Visuals

"Like sands through the hourglass, so are the days of our lives." The beloved melodrama was created by the married couple Ted and Betty Corday in 1965, which means it has been running for over 58 years. NBC broadcasted it until 2022, when it moved to its subsidiary platform, Peacock. Situated in the fictional Salem, Illinois, the show rotates around the Brady and Horton families.

Throughout the years, it has pushed boundaries by featuring a same-sex wedding or evil-possession storylines. It was also famously parodied and quoted on the NBC sitcom Friends, which welcomed many guest stars from the soap opera in several episodes.

Image: KATRIN BOLOVTSOVA

This CBS game show first aired in 1972, over 52 years ago. But even then, it was a revival of the old 1956–1965 show of the same name. It is officially the longest-running game show in the US, with over 9,000 episodes behind.

For 35 years, it was hosted by Bob Barker, who was replaced by Drew Carey in 2007. Many special guests appeared in the show, from Buzz Aldrin showcasing a replica spacesuit to Jack Black competing in the game, as well as Aaron Paul, who was a hyped contestant before he became famous for his role in Breaking Bad.

Image: Johnny Briggs

Y&R was born thanks to the power couple William J. Bell and Lee Phillip Bell, who also created its sister show, The Bold and the Beautiful. Both shows featured crossovers of many characters. Some actors saw their careers jumpstarted by The Young and the Restless, like Eva Longoria, David Michael Hasselhoff, and Paul Walker.

The CBS show first aired in 1973, 51 years ago. Jeanne Cooper famously played the matriarch Katherine Chancellor, and her 40-year tenure on the show is one of the longest in the genre. The show’s iconic song, "Nadia’s Theme", has become an emblem of the soap opera. It was composed by Henry Mancini, also responsible for the brilliant "Pink Panther" theme.

Image: Kai Pilger

NBC Saturday Night was the original name when the gem comedy show first aired in 1975. Created and run to this day by Lorne Michaels, the show’s comedy sketches have been parodying contemporary American culture and politics for almost 5 decades.

Each weekly episode features one celebrity guest star as well as a musician or band for the great musical number, who then participate alongside the stationed cast in the week’s sketches. Over its course, the show notably became a platform for introducing endless comedic talents, such as Bill Murray, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Billy Crystal, and Eddie Murphy.

Image: Annie Starichenko

After 34 years, Fox’s gem show holds several records, like the longest-running American animated series. Matt Groening created the characters of this dysfunctional family after his own, and what started as an odd pilot evolved into an internationally celebrated prime-time show.

It has achieved many strange accolades over the years, from welcoming over 900 stars as guests, including Paul McCartney and Stephen Hawking, to having the original word "D’Oh!" registered by the Oxford English Dictionary, and even gaining a reputation for predicting the future with its storylines.

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Long before YouTube was even a concept, Bob Saget was already hosting America's Funniest Home Videos. Although the conductor has varied over its 700 episodes, it is one of the longest-running reality TV shows in the US, after 34 years.

The show was based on a popular Japanese program with the same concept: Viewers would send funny videos recorded at home, and the host would present them with family-friendly jokes. Since the 80s, this show has understood the hook in user-generated content that would one day flood social media, such as silly footage of pets, funny bloopers, and cute babies.

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Even though it was a spin-off of the 1990 Law & Order, the police drama with Mariska Hargitay as Detective Olivia Benson eventually became the bigger and longer-running hit. The live-action series has received over 100 award nominations since its release in 1999.

Special Victims Unit is known for having featured impressive guest stars like Sarah Paulson, Robin Williams, and Sharon Stone. Fans were sad to see Christopher Meloni's departure in 2011, whose character, Elliot Stabler, was just as iconic as Detective Benson.

Image: Annie Spratt

Another famous animated series on American TV, Family Guy has been running for over 25 years. Seth MacFarlane’s adult show about the quirky Griffins family was launched on January 31, 1999, right after that year’s Super Bowl. The show’s characteristic sense of humor is based on its rapid-fire cutaway gags.

Although the show was canceled once in 2000 and again in 2002, it was the viewers’ fanaticism and the surge of DVD purchases that convinced Fox to continue its production, and as of 2024, new seasons are still being released.

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There was a reality TV boom in the early 2000s, and Survivor is in large part to blame for that. Launched in the year 2000, the show derived from the Swedish version Expedition Robinson, which had been running since 1997.

Hosted by Jeff Probst, Survivor became famous for exploring not just the survival skills of its contestants, but also the group psychology of people challenged by the strain of decision-making under stress. During its first eleven seasons, Survivor was one of the most-watched shows in the country: 51 million people turned on their TVs to watch the first season’s finale.