News of the week and poll results

Ancient bristlecone pines are dying

Thanks to all who took part in The Green Dispatch poll on Monday. It has proven to be a big help for me and this newsletter.

It turns out that the Monday issues are quite popular, the Friday “News of the week” not so much. Folks let me know that they like the science articles the most. Book reviews proved to be popular, too. Those will remain a staple of the Monday publication.

As it stands, this will probably be the last News of the week in its present form. I’ll continue to post news items on Fridays, but in a more truncated format. If you want to read more on the news items, you can click the links provided. Other features of The Green Dispatch—”In Touch” the focus on rare and endangered species, guest editorials, “News you can uses” and other subjects will be added to Fridays.

The other thing that folks asked for is to have the Dispatch sent out more frequently. I’m looking into this. Receiving multiple Dispatches a week would be reserved for paying subscribers who opt in for it. Thanks again to all who helped with this survey!

News of the week

Ancient bristlecone pines are dying

According to a recent study, thousands of ancient bristlecone pines in California, Utah, and Nevada have died in recent years.

The study found that since 2013 bristlecones ranging in age from 144 to 1,612 years have died in their refuge on Telescope Peak, the mountain that towers more than eleven thousand feet over the arid landscape of Death Valley. Other bristlecones in southern Utah have also died. The study was published in the scientific journal Forest Ecology and Management

A bristlecone pine. Photo: The Spruce the spruce.com

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Bristlecone pines are survivors in the plant kingdom, living for hundreds or thousands of years. One of the bristlecones, nicknamed Methuselah, who first took root 4853 years ago, is considered to be the oldest tree on the planet.