It is considered a real living fossil, it can survive up to 2000 years. It’s called Welwitschia and is a tree that lives in Africa.
The dating with Carbon 14 has shown that some specimens are over 2000 years old. It is located mainly in Namibia, particularly in the Namib desert, in one of the most inhospitable areas of this remote land. Although the so -called Skeleton Coast is almost completely uninhabited, it is actually full of wildlife.
Here also lives Welwitschia Mirabilis, a creature different from any other living on Earth, able to survive in a place where practically no rain is seen. A tree with only two leaves that at first glance seems almost a tuft of algae death.
Welwitschia derives from its scientific name, Welwitschia Mirabilis, Although sometimes it is indicated in regional languages such as Nunmbo, Onyanga (onion) and, in Afrikaans, TweeblaarkanniesoDood (two leaves that cannot die).
Normally lives over 1,000-1,500 years but there are documented cases of plants of this type that survived for 2,000.
The anatomy of this inhabitant of the desert is even stranger than its appearance and propensity for a long life. In addition to the roots and a short stem, each plant has only two leaves that never fall and grow constantly throughout life.
Another peculiarity is that it is a species dioic, That is, there are specimens with male flowers and female flowers characterized by several conical pods and producers of nectar.
One of the lesser known names of Welwitschia is “desert octopus“. He has two leaves, not eight arms, but they are often divided into wings from the wind that lasted on the Skeleton Coast. Furthermore, since the trunk is short, the leaves are curious along the ground giving the plant the appearance of an octopus that lies on the bottom of the sea.
The stem swells instead of climbing, often reaching more than a meter in width. This Too shape helps the plant because it maintains fresh roots even if the ground temperature reaches very high levels. In addition, the “lumpy” leaves retain humidity in the ground directly around the stem and roots. Here is the secret thanks to which this plant survives so well in an arid environment.
Drought adaptations
One of the reasons why Welwitschia can survive for millennia is its incredible ability to resist extreme drought. Thanks to a system of deep roots and the ability to absorb humidity from the air through the leaves, the plant can survive with very little water. In addition, it has a form of Cam photosynthesis (acid metabolism of the Crassulaceae) which allows it to reduce water loss during the hottest hours of the day.
Reproduction and pollination
Welwitschia is a dioic plant, which means that there are separate male and female specimens. Its flowers, similar to small wood structures, are mainly pollined by insects, especially beetles. This distinguishes it from most of the desert plants, which often rely on the wind for pollination.
A fossiliVivente
From an evolutionary point of view, Welwitschia belongs to the division of the Gnetophyta, a group of ancient gimnosperms that originated over 100 million years ago. Its unique structure and its characteristics make it a real living fossil, designed by botanists from all over the world to better understand the evolution of land plants.
Welwitschia plants are a tourist attraction. Often they are found in depressions because the little rain that falls into desert areas flows into these deposits. The largest plants are close to other attractions of the Namibia, Like the Messum crater, about 16 km wide millions of years ago. Here some of the greatest living examples of Welwitschia live here.
The main city of Namibia, Windhoek, has specimens of Welwitschia in its botanical garden. Here tourists can admire this splendid creature capable of resisting time.
