Oldest moss on Earth fails to adapt to current global warming

Takakia. That’s what scientists call it. A moosemoose – Two species of moss, actually – not at all like the others. Its leaves are feather shaped! And she is the oldest moss in the world. Over 400 million years, it has survived mass extinctions at least four times. Along with the Himalayan formation, this is the only place where the two species of Takakia co-exist.

a moss that grew along the himalayas

This moss is one of the oldest on Earth today because it is the one that adapts most rapidly to changing environments. Thank you, let the researchers of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences know about their appearance genomegenome of the largest number of GenoaGenoa The rapid development of all known foams. This is probably what allowed Takakia to withstand falling temperatures and increasing amounts of radiation. ultravioletultraviolet This is achieved with the height of the Himalayas. All this in only 50 million years.

But what the researchers tell us above all is that these extraordinary evolutionary abilities have not allowed Takakia to adapt to the high rate at which temperatures are rising in the Himalayas today under the influence of global warming. In just over a decade, scientists report that temperatures here have risen by 0.4 °C, reducing Takakia’s range by 1.6% per year. This is also higher than the foam used as a control.

Will this moss be another victim of global warming?

At this rate, researchers estimate that by the end of this century, only less than 1,500 square kilometers of the world will have suitable conditions for takakiya to flourish. In hopes of successfully preventing human-caused global warming from destroying the world’s oldest moss, scientists have begun to increase Tatakia populations and relocate them to other areas.