GENERAL SHERMAN YOUNGER THAN IT LOOKS.In the ultimate reversal of the "funny, you don't look that old" story, scientists are now saying they think the world's biggest tree, the General Sherman giant sequoia giant sequoia: see sequoia. , may be significantly younger than previously thought. The 275-foot behemoth behemoth (bē`hĭmŏth, bĭhē`–) [Heb.,=plural of beast], large, fanciful primeval monster, like Leviathan, evoking the hippopotamus mentioned in the Book of Job. in California's Sequoia National Park Sequoia National Park, 402,510 acres (162,960 hectares), E central Calif.; est. 1890. In the park are 35 groves of giant sequoias, spectacular granite mountains, and deep canyons. may be only 2,000 years old, rather than 6,000, according to Reuters News Service. The tree has held the title of National Champion giant sequoia since AMERICAN FORESTS began keeping the National Register of Big Trees The National Register of Big Trees is a list of the largest living specimens of each tree variety found in the continental United States. A tree on this list is often called a National Champion Tree. in 1940. "The Sherman tree isn't so large because it's exceptionally old, but because it's growing so fast," research ecologist Nate Stephenson of the U.S. Geological Survey said. Stephenson's research shows that the biggest trees are not necessarily the oldest. "Most of the largest sequoias are really just middle-aged," Reuters quotes Stephenson as saying. "But they're still growing like teenagers--at a fast and furious rate." |
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