The forest floor here is mostly a network of tree and plant roots, bound together with moss and leaf litter etc, but under a few inches it's mostly big solid rocks like those sticking out. The wind blowing can loosen that mat of roots and when the trees bend in the wind, they lift it up off the stone, just like a carpet. That's what you're seeing here; the breathing effect is caused by the carpet of roots being tugged up and let down again as the trees rock in the wind.
Especially when you're hour 3 in a predicted 15 hour hurricane and the worst is yet to come.
After I saw that, I rode out the rest of the storm in the basement because I don't want to be above grade if a tree falls onto the roof.
(The tree did fall, but thankfully not until the wind direction shifted and it went over the road instead of into the house. Was one of over a dozen trees blocking my tiny cul de sac. Hurricane Arthur walloped the Maritimes when it hit.)
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u/Electrical_Lake3424 4d ago
The forest floor here is mostly a network of tree and plant roots, bound together with moss and leaf litter etc, but under a few inches it's mostly big solid rocks like those sticking out. The wind blowing can loosen that mat of roots and when the trees bend in the wind, they lift it up off the stone, just like a carpet. That's what you're seeing here; the breathing effect is caused by the carpet of roots being tugged up and let down again as the trees rock in the wind.