Nature
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In a world that changes as rapidly as ours does, it can be hard to imagine much that stands the test of time. Trees, however, seem to be pretty damn good at it (unless we keep chopping them down, of course) – and there’s even one that’s seen us through since the Ancient Egyptians were kicking about.
The rest of this article is behind a paywall. Please sign in or subscribe to access the full content.That tree is Methuselah, a bristlecone pine that’s quite aptly nicknamed after the biblical figure who was said to have lived for 969 years. That’s nothing in comparison to this tree though, which is thought to be at least 4,789 years old, if not older, meaning it is generally considered to be the oldest tree in the world.
Methuselah can be found somewhere between California’s Sierra Nevada range and the Nevada border, in the Inyo National Forest. Its exact location, however, is kept secret to keep it out of harm’s way because, like we said, humans seem to have an unfortunate habit of lopping down old and iconic trees.
It helps that Methuselah is protected, but the traits of bristlecone pines mean it’s no surprise that they’re among the oldest living organisms. This group of trees are what’s known as extremophiles, living in regions with extreme weather and dry soils – if Methuselah can deal with all of that, no wonder it’s been around for so long, though it also means it takes an extremely long time to grow.
Nonetheless, these trees have adapted to the harsh conditions by having branched, shallow roots to get as much water as possible. They also have a solid resistance against pest invasion, literally – bristlecones have dense, resinous wood that’s very hard to wriggle into.
What Methuselah also seems pretty resistant to is competition for the title of “World’s Oldest Tree”. Various other contenders have popped up over the years, but one of the closest calls in recent times came in the form of a giant cypress tree known as “Great Grandfather”.
Found in an ancient forest in southern Chile, some researchers believe that the tree is well over 5,000 years old, meaning it could safely snatch the title away from Methuselah. However, others have taken issue with how its age has been estimated.
Typically, tree age is estimated by boring a sample from the core of the tree and analyzing its rings. Researchers Jonathan Barichivich and Antonio Lara attempted to do this to Great Grandfather, but couldn’t quite reach the middle. Instead, they used statistical modeling using samples from other trees to estimate age.
Since that goes against established methods, Methuselah appears to be keeping a hold of its crown for now, if a little more precariously than before.
