Re: OT The world's oldesr tree.
- Subject: Re: OT The world's oldesr tree.
- From: L* R*
- Date: Mon, 18 Dec 2000 13:15:55 -0800 (PST)
> >mentioned the same tree but claimed as far as we can make out that it is
> >12,000 years old.
>
> AFAIK, in California, the ice sheets only really covered the mountains in
> localized glaciers, not the coastal mountains (there's no evidence of
> glacial activity in the nearby Santa Lucias, AFAIK). This redwood is in
> Prairie Creek Redwoods state park, which is on the coast. A site I came
> across also gave the 12,000 year old date, but it says this is disputed
> and gave 7,000 also.
Rest assured that ANY date for any living tree much above 5,000 years is
pure
fantasy! One would think that several millenia is enough, but Tree-olatry
tends to many exaggerated claims, which usually associate great size with
great age.
The oldest Sierra redwoods are certainly older than the oldest coast
redwoods, and many bristlecone pines surpass all the redwoods, some
exceeding 5000 years. I don't think that 6000 is authenticated for any
living indivdual, though there are reasonable examples of greater age in
clones [fungi, creosote-bush, box-huckleberry].
loren russell, Corvallis, Oregon, USA
