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In their simplest form crop circles appear as, roughly circular markings in grass, or crops such as wheat, barley and oilseed rape. On the ground, the crop is seen to be pressed flat, with a distinctive swirled pattern, ending with a sharply defined edge, beyond which the standing crop is unaffected. The spiral pattern can be either clockwise or anti-clockwise and, when viewed from above, appears strikingly beautiful, as if stamped or printed into the crop. 1. What is a Crop circle? A Basic Crop Circle Characteristics of The Circles Various design characteristics can be described: * Sharply defined perimeter - This has been described as a 'cookie cutter' effect, as if the circle has been cut with a huge biscuit cutter. * Stems laid almost flat to the ground - Often said to be 'bent but not broken’. When fresh (e. g. before visitors have trampled it) the crop appears in 'bundles', bent right over, almost horizontal. * Swirled, spiralling, veined or banded appearance to the flattened stems - A sense of ‘flow’. * 'Precision' effects - Rows of single stems left standing within the formation. * Weaving, interlaced lays - Sections of the formation where there are underlying bands, often at