Trees come in various shapes and sizes, each with its distinct feature. How they communicate, grow, and exist for generations fascinates humans. Some can even survive the harshest environmental conditions and outlive the other species. Here are the top five of the world's oldest, tallest, and biggest trees.
1. Methuselah Tree
Methuselah, a Great Basin bristlecone pine (Pinus longaeva), is considered the oldest living tree in the world, which has existed for 4,854 years. Named after the longest-living person in the Bible, this tree can be found in the White Mountains of Inyo County in the eastern part of California.
Like the other members of the bristlecone pine family, Methuselah grew so old due to its ability to adapt to its harsh environment characterized by high altitude and hot climate. Methuselah can thrive in soil that other trees find hard to grow in. Its extremely dense wood full of resin can lose almost 90% of its bark and survive.
2. Cypress of Abarqu (Sarv-e Abarkuh)
The Cypress of Abarqu is an old Cyprus tree (Cupressus sempervirens) located in Abarkuh City of Iran. It is believed to be between 4,000 to 5,000 years old, making it the oldest tree in Asia.
Cyprus plays a significant role in the history and culture of Iran, appearing in various poetry and carvings in Persepolis as it signifies life and beauty. They are also known as Zoroastrian Sar; this tree's origin is still a mystery.
3. Pando
The world's oldest living organism is about 80,000 years old. Known as Pando from the Latin word 'I spread,' this organism is a single grove of Quaking Aspen trees in Utah.
Pando, called the Trembling Giant, is the world's oldest clonal tree. This means that it started as a single massive root system and cloned itself for thousands of years. Currently, its root system has about 47,00 stems that form grove of trees which keep the system growing across 108 acres of land. Because of this, Pando could also be the heaviest living organism weighing 6 million kilograms.
READ ALSO: 2,624-Year-Old Tree Still Standing Strong Along North Carolina's Black River
4. Hyperion
This tree got the top spot for being the largest tree in the world. This coastal redwood (Sequioa sempervirens) is named after the Greek Titan by naturalists Chris K. Atkins and Michael W. Taylor. It is located in the Redwood National Park in California.
The entire body of Hyperion measures 380 feet tall. Its 298-ft tall crown is estimated to contain more than 550 million leaves and is one of the deepest redwood crowns measured. However, there is little to look at from below since only its first 150 feet can be seen from the ground.
5. General Sherman
The General Sherman tree is the largest tree in the world in terms of volume. The giant sequoia (Sequoiadendron giganteum) measures 275 feet tall and is more than 36 feet wide at the base. Its crown is 108 feet wide, and the first branch starts only 130 feet from the ground.
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