Written By: Daria Haner Edited By: Yosharelli Santillano-Granados
When looking at a picture of the Pando Forest in Fishlake National Forest, Utah, you see thousands of aspen trees—sunshine yellow in the fall, and a lively green in spring and summer. Now, what if I told you that all the trees in this forest were the same organism? While these plants share different features, like trunks and branches, they have a massive underground root system connecting each tree to one another. We know these trees are all part of a singular larger organism because of genetic testing that has revealed them all to be clones! This means that they all share the same genetics.
Scientists believe that the Pando forest has around 47,000 trunks covering 106 acres of land. This explains the name “Pando”— scholars of Latin know that Pando means “I spread,” which this network of trees certainly does. There are also different guesses as to the age of the forest, but many scientists estimate that it is between 9,000 to 12,000 years old. For reference, 12,000 years ago was still during the ice age!
One reason why it may have lived so long is that this type of tree, called a “quaking aspen,” is well-adapted to its environment, which can include winds up to 60 miles per hour and seasonal forest fires. In fact, these trees are often “quakies” because of their fluttering leaves and flexible trunks that sway in the wind. So, instead of falling in the wind, they can bend back and forth and stay up. They also store water in their trunks and don’t make the same flammable oils that other trees do, making them more likely to survive forest fires than other trees.
Despite these adaptations, a couple of issues threaten the Pando Forest today, including deer and elk grazing on the newest trunks and drought (periods with very little rainfall, leading to dry conditions). However, scientists, the United States Forest Service, and volunteers from the Friends of Pando organization all help to keep this extraordinary organism safe and healthy.
Vocabulary:
Organism: a living being, like an animal, plant, or fungus
Genetics: how traits pass from one generation to the next
Adaptations: a trait that helps an organism survive in its environment
References
History.com Editors. (2018, August 21). Ice Age. HISTORY; A&E Television Networks. https://www.history.com/topics/pre-history/ice-age
Pando, the Trembling Giant. (2010, November 11). Atlas Obscura. https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/pando-the-trembling-giant
Welch, C. (2022, May 10). The biggest living thing on Earth is being nibbled to death. Can it be saved? National Geographic. https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/article/the-biggest-living-thing-on-earth-is-being-nibbled-to-death
What is the Pando Tree? | The Pando Tree. (n.d.). Friends of Pando. https://www.friendsofpando.org/what-is-pando/
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