The tallest tree in the world is a coast redwood (Sequoia sempervirens), named Hyperion after a person in Greek mythology. The tree is no less than 115.72 m (379.7 feet) tall! This enormous tree was discovered only in August 2006 in a remote part of Redwood National Park, California
The earliest redwoods showed up on Earth shortly after the dinosaurs – and before flowers, birds, spiders… and, of course, humans. Redwoods have been around for about 240 million years and in California for at least 20 million years, compared to about 200,000 years for “modern” humans.
Officially, the oldest living coast redwood is at least 2,200 years old, but foresters believe some coast redwoods may be much older.
Coast redwoods grow only one place on Earth – right here on the Pacific coast, from Big Sur to southern Oregon. Earlier in the Earth’s history, redwoods had a much wider range, including western North America and the coasts of Europe and Asia.
The familiar local redwood tree has an official Latin name, Sequoia sempervirens. That’s why the local nonprofit organization working to protect, expand and care for the local redwood forests is called “Sempervirens Fund.”
Today, over 160,000 acres of redwood forest are protected by federal, state, county and local parks on the Redwood Coast
(Facts provided by Sempervirens Fund 2016)
Redwood Facts