The Wollemi pine was thought to have gone extinct 2 million years ago until it was rediscovered by a group of hikers in 1994. Now, scientists have decoded its genome to understand how it's survived — almost unchanged — since the time of the dinosaurs.
In 1994, hikers discovered a group of strange trees growing in a canyon in Wollemi National Park, about 60 miles west of Sydney, Australia. One hiker notified a park service naturalist, who then showed leaf specimens to a botanist. It was ultimately determined they represented an ancient species that had been essentially frozen in time since dinosaurs roamed Earth.
Related: World's deepest canyon is home to Asia's tallest tree - and Chinese scientists only just found it Their rarity may be partly due to the high number of transposons, or"jumping genes" — stretches of DNA that can change their position within the genome. These elements also account for the genome's size."The tiniest plant genome and the largest plant genome have almost the same number of genes.
"In 99% of all cases, mutations are probably not a good idea," Schoenknecht said."But over millions of years, the 1% that helps can move the species forward. In this case it may have been a bit of an advantage."
South Africa Latest News, South Africa Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
This Rare Emerald Green 1994 Dodge Viper Is A Great Way To Spend $59,900This 1994 Dodge Viper RT/10 has only been driven 9,640 miles and looks almost brand new
Read more »
Coca-Cola Just Launched A New Mystery Flavor Created By AIThe new Coca-Cola drink, which is hitting stores in the United States this week, will supposedly let you taste the future.
Read more »
Rep. Lauren Boebert’s ‘mystery man’ is a Democrat who owns a Colorado bar: reportThe divorced dad of one apparently scandalized his left-leaning family by spending the evening with the firebrand Republican, whom he has apparently been dating for months without their knowledge.
Read more »
Box Office: Kenneth Branagh’s Murder Mystery ‘A Haunting in Venice’ Targets Middling $15 Million Debut“A Haunting in Venice,” Kenneth Branagh’s latest cinematic take on Agatha Christie’s library of murder mystery novels, is expected to spook the box office competition. It&8…
Read more »