Unusual Animal Behaviour before Earthquakes and Multiple Parameter Monitoring in Western Piedmont

Abstract

The complex synergy of various non-seismic precursor phenomena renders difficult to specify what are the chemical and physical parameters, whose variations give more problems to the animal and plant kingdoms. Local seismic events are generally seldom announced by anomalous animal behaviours. Unfortunately we do not understand animal languages or their meaningful vocal modulations. Moreover, many animal alarms are not acknowledged. A number of animal and human observations in Northern Italy are reported, which can suggests physical observations potentially connected with seismic events. The study of seismic precursors is still in its infancy, the error margin on temporal and spatial forecast is still large and must be evaluated. Being so, a multiple parameter physical monitoring started recently in Western Piedmont, which is useful to propose the study of seismic precursors possibly linked to animal behaviour. Electric and magnetic detectors were operating together with alpha particle and acoustic detectors, while a collection of anomalous biological and meteorological observations were taken. Variations in the recent years of the magnetic declination revealed to be a good candidate to precursor, related to the direction of compression, traction and stretching on rocks, even if the geographic localization of future earthquakes is still impossible. In case of some local unusual animal behaviours it can suggest the occurrence of a local seismic