This isn't just any grove of trees: it's Pando, one of the heaviest and oldest organisms on our planet:

Pando, Latin for "I spread", has been alive for 80,000 years and weighs 6m kilograms.

How does an entire colony of trees count as a single organism? Well, quaking aspen are unique in that they're clonal. This means that thousands of individual trees that live and die can share a single root system that lives underground. And Pando has an incredibly old root system.

To give a bit of perspective: by the time recorded human history began, Pando's ancient roots had already been in the earth for the better part of 75,000 years.

This grove of beautiful aspen isn't the only ancient organism we need to cherish. Here are a few others from around the world that seem to have a knack for survival:

There's something deeply peaceful in knowing that organisms have survived on this planet for most of human history and longer. What right do we have to endanger their continued existence? If you agree, share this with everybody you know.

A big thanks to the folks at TreeHugger for bringing the incredible Pando to our attention.