Fun Fact #6: Have you ever heard of a living fossil? Well Welwitschia mirabilis is a plant species that lives in the desert border of Namibia and Angola in Africa. These plants are estimated to be around 1500 - 2000 years old and are still alive today. The plants are so old that as time passed the climate changed around them and now they can’t even reproduce (in the wild anyway).

Question

anonymous · Answer

nysh !!!!

anonymous · Answer

welwitschia is also an exception in gymnosperm as it contain vascular tissue like angiosperm

anonymous · Answer

i like your your facts plz continue.. :-)

aroub · Answer

this is nice!!  yea pls continue i love reading them..!!!! :D

anonymous · Answer

1500 to 2000 years i wander whats the mystery behind the living age

anonymous · Answer

They do reproduce in the wild . It is true the plants are spread apart very far from each other but the male flowers are not meant to spread pollen like typical gymnosperms , they exude nectar used to attract insects as a vector for their dispersal. A certain species of wasps are suspected to do this work in the wild. The reason they dont seem to germinate very fast in the wild is more due to  the fact that the plants are susceptibile to fungal attack during the initial period after germination and the seeds although viable for yrs dont germinate unless a protective chemical on it is not washed off with excess of water. Its a fail safe to ensure they germinate only during periods of abundant water although they depend mostly on the fog and mist of the desert for their daily moisture requirement once germinated.

trancenova · Answer

hello, thanks again guys :) 

@aster01 cheers for adding :)

eek trying to think of todays one :P