Pinus longaeva
Pinus longaeva, commonly known as the Bristlecone Pine, is an evergreen tree species that is truly remarkable. Its genus name pinus identifies it as a member of the pine family of evergreens. The species name longaeva is derived from the Latin meaning of great or long life. From this term we get the English word longevity. When we learn more about this species, it is not hard to imagine where this name comes from.
These trees live an average of about 1,000 years, with many living to be as old as 4,000 years of age! The oldest known tree is "Methuselah" and is reported to be 4,789 years old and is believed to be the oldest living thing. An older tree, "Prometheus", was 4,862 years old, but was cut down in 1964 by a graduate student who was investigating evidence of Ice Age glaciers.
The Bristlecone pine lives in scattered, arid mountain regions of six western states, with the oldest found in the Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest in the White Mountains of California. These trees grow at elevations of 10,000 to 11,000 feet and often in conditions so harsh, no other vegetation can survive.
The Bristlecone is a multi-trunked tree with wood so dense that the tree may remain standing for hundreds of years after its death. When most of its wood is dead, growth barely continues through a thin ribbon of bark. The needles are a yellow-green color, and come in bundles of 5, extending 1 to 1.5 inches in length. These needles can survive up to thirty years. The tree is named for the long, hooked spine on the scales of the cones, which are 2.5 to 3.75 inches long, and take up to 2 years to mature.
