# Tree temperatures

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tree-temperatures/841221>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [October 3, 2019, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tree-temperatures/841221 "2019-10-03T20:17:40Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Nansbread1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Nansbread1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nansbread1)\
**Post date:** [October 3, 2019, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tree-temperatures/841221/1 "2019-10-03T20:17:40Z")

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Do trees have a heat signature. Are any species of trees hotter than others?

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**Author:** ![Arkcon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@Arkcon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arkcon)\
**Post date:** [October 4, 2019, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tree-temperatures/841221/2 "2019-10-04T02:36:20Z")

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Very few plants have a mechanism to waste cellular energy to generate heat energy. For example, skunk cabbages melt snow to sprout and liberate their “perfume” to attract early spring pollinators, flies, which also crave external source of heat.

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**Author:** ![mixdenny](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mixdenny/32/2962_2.png) [@mixdenny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mixdenny)\
**Post date:** [October 4, 2019, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tree-temperatures/841221/3 "2019-10-04T15:17:55Z")

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I believe they are actually cooler because of evaporation. At any rate diseased plants (trees?) can be spotted from the air using infrared or UV, it is one of the services of the USGS.

Dennis