Methuselah is a 4,851-year-old Great Basin bristlecone pine (Pinus longaeva) tree growing high in the White Mountains of Inyo County in eastern California. It is recognized as the non-clonal tree with the greatest confirmed age in the world.
Methuselah was 4,789 years old when sampled (likely in 1957) by Edmund Schulman and Tom Harlan, with an estimated germination date of 2833 BC. Since this tree ages back to this date, using tree rings, research shows precipitation patterns that dates back to 1983 BC.
Upon visiting the tree, Robert Mohlenbrock, a professor of botany at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale, thought “that any organism that lived longer than the norm had to have optimal conditions going for it … that would mean moderate temperatures, shelter from extreme weather, and plenty of moisture and nutrients.” He was wrong. Methuselah lives in a nasty place - for a tree. There are just patches of soil at the tree’s extreme elevation and fierce winds blow. The Bristlecone Pine is perfectly adapted to the semi-arid boreal climate in which it lives.
Upon visiting the tree, Robert Mohlenbrock, a professor of botany at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale, thought “that any organism that lived longer than the norm had to have optimal conditions going for it … that would mean moderate temperatures, shelter from extreme weather, and plenty of moisture and nutrients.” He was wrong. Methuselah lives in a nasty place - for a tree. There are just patches of soil at the tree’s extreme elevation and fierce winds blow. The Bristlecone Pine is perfectly adapted to the semi-arid boreal climate in which it lives.
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