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Darkness of the eclipse sheds new light on zoo animal behaviour

Animals reacted in a variety of ways — much of them unexpected as it got dark during Quebec day
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A Quebec zoo took advantage of last Monday’s total solar eclipse to study the behaviours of some of its animals. A Japanese macaque looks on at the Granby Zoo in Granby, Que., in a Jan. 17, 2024, handout photo. The zoo’s research and conservation department was approached by an astrophysics professor from the Université du Québec à Montréal about taking part in an animal behaviour study and collecting data on how they reacted during the rare phenomenon. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO-Granby Zoo, Keith Bartlett

As darkness settled during last week’s total solar eclipse, Japanese macaques turned their backs to the sun and red crowned cranes went uncharacteristically quiet.

But the Himalayan black bears just slept as if nothing was happening.

A Quebec zoo took advantage of last Monday’s total solar eclipse to study the behaviours of some of its animals. The zoo’s research and conservation department was approached by an astrophysics professor from the Université du Québec à Montréal about taking part in an animal behaviour study and collecting data on how they reacted during the rare phenomenon.

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