{"id":38192,"date":"2024-05-02T12:18:44","date_gmt":"2024-05-02T10:18:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/92ef60a7-df1a-4597-8f15-ba738e01723b"},"modified":"2024-05-02T13:35:39","modified_gmt":"2024-05-02T11:35:39","slug":"a-tree-that-can-walk-how-one-walking-tree-is-said-to-be-able-to-move-itself-to-a-sunnier-spot","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/rss_feed\/a-tree-that-can-walk-how-one-walking-tree-is-said-to-be-able-to-move-itself-to-a-sunnier-spot\/","title":{"rendered":"A tree that can walk? How one ‘walking tree’ is said to be able to move itself to a sunnier spot"},"content":{"rendered":"

There’s a walking tree? Stuart Blackman investigates a tree that is said to be able to move <\/p>

By <\/p>

Published: Thursday, 02 May 2024 at 10:18 AM<\/p>

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Plants don\u2019t really do locomotion. True, some seeds<\/a> can travel long distances on the wind or in the stomachs of animals, and tumbleweeds scatter theirs by uprooting and rolling around in the background whenever a joke falls flat. But as a rule, plants aren\u2019t going anywhere.\u00a0<\/p>

Meet the walking tree<\/h2>

Still, there is one enduring story out there about a \u2018walking tree\u2019. It concerns a tropical American palm named Socratea exorrhiza<\/em>, whose trunk is raised off the ground on a cluster of stilt-like roots. It is said to be able to haul itself out of the shade and into sunnier spots by growing more roots on one side and losing them on the other.<\/p>

In 2015, the BBC quoted a Russian biologist working in Ecuador who claimed to have seen the Socratea exorrhiza<\/em>, move up to 20m in two years<\/a>. Evidence, though, hasn\u2019t been forthcoming. <\/p>

What has been shown is that the roots provide a wide, stable base for the tree, enabling it to grow tall without having to increase its girth. This gives the young palms an advantage in the race towards gaps in the canopy. In which case, the trees can indeed move into the light; it\u2019s just that they take the lift rather than walk.<\/p>

Discover more fascinating trees<\/strong><\/p>