The Reality Reports

Pale green patches on tree bark may look like moss or a plant disease. They are often lichens, complex living systems formed through cooperation. A lichen usually includes a fungus living closely with an alga, a cyanobacterium, or both. Together, these partners can survive in places where either one might struggle alone.

A tree trunk contains more than wood. In many species, its growth rings preserve a record of changing conditions. Scientists study these patterns to estimate a tree’s age and investigate past droughts, fires, insect outbreaks, and other events. This field is called dendrochronology. It turns carefully measured wood patterns into timelines that can reach far beyond written weather records.