Fairy circle (arid grass formation)

Fairy circles are circular patches of bare ground, between about two and twelve metres across, usually ringed by a band of grass that grows more vigorously than the vegetation around it. They are found in the arid grasslands of the Namib desert in the western part of Southern Africa and in part of the Pilbara region of Western Australia. In the languages of the Aboriginal peoples of the Pilbara they are called linyji in Manyjilyjarra and mingkirri in Warlpiri. Several explanations have been proposed, including the activity of different kinds of termites that alter plant growth, and natural competition between grasses that produces regular vegetation patterns, but no study has yet shown conclusively how they form.