This discovery makes the extremely rare bald cypress one of the oldest clones in the world.

Researchers discovered this ancient cypress while studying the tree rings of ancient trees in the area in an effort to piece together the climate history of the eastern United States.

Previous research has identified a number of trees between 1,000 and 1,650 years old, but they are all far behind the lifespan of the newly discovered bald cypress.

In addition to the 2,624-year-old individual reported above, researchers found a 2,088-year-old cypress tree in the same area.

Rows of trees with a strange appearance like this appearing in the fog can easily make people think they are lost in a ghost land.

Although rare ancient trees, including the thousand-year-old cypress described in the study, live on protected lands in the North Carolina Nature Conservancy, their existence is still threatened by mining and biomass extraction activities taking place elsewhere on the river, as well as industrial pollution and climate change.

Currently, scientists are continuing to research and find ways to preserve this extremely rare bald cypress tree.