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w w w . d i s t i n c t l y m o n t a n a . c o m
SOME SCIENTISTS THINK THAT, IF THE NUTRIENTS ARE AMPLE ENOUGH
AND IN THE ABSENCE OF THE FEW FACTORS THAT CAN ACTUALLY KILL THEM,
lichen is functionally immortal and does not grow old.
RHIZOCARPON GEOGRAPHICUM (MAP LICHEN)
Individual specimens can live for thousands of years—one in East Baffin Island is estimated at
9,500 years old, and some in Alaska may be 10,000-11,500 years old. In a space experiment,
this lichen survived two weeks of exposure to the vacuum and radiation of outer space.
