Wildlife
Baobabs are trees recognisable by their distinctive swollen stems. Occurring naturally in the dry areas of Magagascar, Africa and Australia, they store massive amounts of water in their stems to cope with seasonal droughts. The tree's fruits are large pods known as 'monkey bread' or 'cream of tartar fruit' and are rich in vitamin C. One baobab tree in South Africa, known as 'Big Baobab', has a circumference of 47 metres and even a bar for 60 people inside the trunk.
Scientific name: Adansonia
Rank: Genus
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Sacred baobab
How a belief in spirits has protected the dry forest around a famous tree.
How a belief in spirits has protected the dry forest around a famous tree.
Baobab avenue
The remnants of a once mighty Madagascan forest.
The remnants of a once mighty Madagascan forest.
Flowering baobabs
High up in the branches of the baobab a little-seen spectacle takes place.
Occurring high above ground, at night and for only a short time each year, the opening of the baobab's flowers is rarely observed. The crew used rope access and special climbers to reach the tree tops. Once there, they were able to avoid the usual grainy footage associated with night filming by using low light capable HD cameras.
The Baobabs can be found in a number of locations including: Africa, Australia, Madagascar. Find out more about these places and what else lives there.
Adansonia is a genus of eight species of tree, six native to Madagascar, one native to mainland Africa and the Arabian Peninsula and one to Australia. The mainland African species also occurs on Madagascar, but it is not a native of that island, and was introduced in ancient times to south Asia and during the colonial era to the Caribbean. A ninth species was identified in 2012, incorporating upland populations of southern and eastern Africa.
A typical common name is baobab. Other common names include boab, boaboa, tabaldi, bottle tree, upside-down tree, and monkey bread tree. The generic name honours Michel Adanson, the French naturalist and explorer who described Adansonia digitata.
Adansonias reach heights of 5 to 30 m (16 to 98 ft) and have trunk diameters of 7 to 11 m (23 to 36 ft). Glencoe baobab – an African baobab specimen in Limpopo Province, South Africa, often considered the largest example alive – up to recent times had a circumference of 47 m (154 ft). Its diameter is estimated at about 15.9 m (52 ft). Recently the tree split up into two parts and it is possible that the stoutest tree now is Sunland baobab, also in South Africa. The diameter of this tree is 10.64 m (34.9 ft), with an approximate circumference of 33.4 m (110 ft).[citation needed]
Some baobabs are reputed to be many thousands of years old, which is difficult to verify, as the wood does not produce annual growth rings, though radiocarbon dating may be able to provide age data.[citation needed]
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