CanopyMeg helps explain why leaves change color in this Untamed Science video:
Every fall in the deciduous forests of the world, there is a miraculous change in the color of the leaves. The turn from green into brilliant shades of yellow, orange, red, and purple. Sometimes you can see several shades on the same leaf. But why are these color changes happening, and what is going on in the plant?
Fortunately, that’s the topic of this Untamed Science video. Rob explains, with the help of Canopy Biologist, Meg Lowman, that it has everything to do with the pigments in the leaves. In fact, many of those pigments have been their all year and can only now be seen. Others, like the red color are a result of pigments produced in the plant as it dies.