Ginkgo Biloba: The 'Living Fossil', Older Than Dinosaurs That Survived Hiroshima Attack

Ginkgo biloba, one of the oldest tree species native to East Asia, is often termed a “living fossil”. It is known to have weathered aeons of environmental upheaval and even the nuclear disaster in Japan's Hiroshima.

The lineage of Ginkgo biloba dates back more than 290 million years to the Permian period, even predating the era of the dinosaurs, while its distinctive fan-shaped leaves have remained virtually unchanged over time, Forbes reported.

'Little Boy'

When the nuclear bomb, nicknamed 'Little Boy', exploded over Hiroshima, the temperature soared to as high as 7,000 degrees Fahrenheit within the first three seconds of its detonation and reached as far as two miles from ground zero.

While everyone within the radius of the blast died instantly and most parts of the city turned to ash, the six Ginkgo biloba trees that stood roughly a mile away from the hypocenter of the blast somehow managed to survive the attack.

Although the leaves were stripped and they were charred by the explosion, it took just a few months for the trees to grow back again. 

The Forbes report has termed them the "living monuments to resilience, evolution and survival". 

No changes in Ginkgo biloba

Fossils discovered from the Jurassic period have showcased Ginkgos' evolutionary stability as the leaves look identical to those seen in modern times.

The Ginkgo biloba plants thrived across the northern supercontinent of Laurasia for millions of years, until the Cretaceous-Paleogene extinction event wiped out dinosaurs as well as the flora and fauna alongside them. At the time, several species succumbed to this mass extinction, but Ginkgos somehow managed to survive.

However, its dominance waned with time as several species of flowering plants emerged and diversified.

Interestingly, this species was thought to have become extinct in the wild until the early 20th century when a small population of it was rediscovered in China's remote regions.

In the Zhongnan Mountains of China, a 1,400-year-old Ginkgo tree is seen standing near Gu Guanyin Buddhist Temple, with its golden leaves carpeting the grounds each autumn.

How they survived

According to a study published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences in January 2020, Ginkgo biloba exhibits no clear signs of senescence, the biological ageing process eventually leading to death. This means that even the trees that are 600 years old maintain the same immune responses as their younger counterparts.