Pando is an ancient aspen tree (Tremuloid populus) with 47,000 genetically identical stems, or tree trunks, connected to an extensive underground root system. Each stem is a clone of the neighboring stem and comes from a single seed that began growing 80,000 years ago during the last ice age.

Pando – from the Latin “I propagate” – is the largest known tree on Earth and the heaviest living organism ever recorded. The colony spans 106 acres (43 hectares) and weighs approximately 6,500 tons (5,900 metric tons), which is equivalent to 40 blue whales or three times the weight. the largest single-stemmed tree in the world — The giant General Sherman sequoia of California (Sequoiadendron giganteum).