Tule | |
---|---|
Species | Montezuma cypress ( Taxodium mucronatum) |
Coordinates | 17°02′47.4″N 96°38′10″W / 17.046500°N 96.63611°W |
Girth | 42.0 m (137.8 ft) |
Date seeded | 400 | – 600
El Árbol del Tule ( Spanish for The Tree of Tule) is a tree located in the church grounds in the town center of Santa María del Tule in the Mexican state of Oaxaca, approximately 9 km (6 mi) east of the city of Oaxaca on the road to Mitla. It is a Montezuma cypress (Taxodium mucronatum), or ahuehuete (meaning "old man of the water" in Nahuatl). It has the stoutest tree trunk in the world. In 2001, it was placed on a UNESCO tentative list of World Heritage Sites, but was removed from the list in 2013. [1]
In 2005, its trunk had a circumference of 42.0 m (137.8 ft), equating to a diameter of 14.05 m (46.1 ft), [2] an increase from a measurement of 11.42 m (37.5 ft) m in 1982. [3] However, the trunk is heavily buttressed, giving a higher diameter reading than the true cross-sectional of the trunk represents; when this is taken into account, the diameter of the 'smoothed out' trunk is 9.38 m (30.8 ft). [2] This is slightly wider than the next most stout tree known, a giant sequoia with a 8.90 m (29.2 ft) diameter. [4]
The height is difficult to measure due to the very broad crown; the 2005 measurement, made by laser, is 35.4 m (116 ft), [2] shorter than previous measurements of 41–43 m (135–141 ft). [3]
It is so large that it was originally thought to be multiple trees, but DNA tests have proven that it is only one tree. [5] [6] This does not rule out another hypothesis, which states that it comprises multiple trunks from a single individual. [7]
The age is unknown, with estimates ranging between 1,200 and 3,000 years, and even one claim of 6,000 years; [7] [8] the best scientific estimate based on growth rates is 1,433–1,600 years. [9] Local Zapotec legend holds that it was planted about 1,400 years ago by Pechocha, a priest of the Aztec wind god Ehecatl - this age is in broad agreement with the scientific estimate; its location on a sacred site (later taken over by the Roman Catholic Church) would also support this. [7] [8]
The tree is occasionally nicknamed the " Tree of Life" from the images of animals that are reputedly visible in the tree's gnarled trunk. As part of an official project local schoolchildren give tourists a tour of the tree and point out shapes of creatures on the trunk, including jaguars and elephants.[ citation needed]
In 1990, it was reported that the tree is slowly dying because its roots have been damaged by water shortages, pollution, and traffic, with 8,000 cars travelling daily on a nearby highway. [10]
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