Signature tree - The Trembling Aspen

 

From Wikimedia, by James St. John, CCL


Trembling aspens are subalpine trees in the mountainous terrains of western North America. The common name “trembling or quaking” refers to the shaking or fluttering of the tree’s leaves in breezes. In this species, the petiole (= “stem” leading to a leaf) is flattened. The flattened surface catches even slight air movements, resulting in the leaves “trembling” or “quaking”. This plant principally propagates by spreading out lateral root systems. Entire groves of quaking aspens can have identical DNA fingerprints - they're all “twins”, or “clones” of each other. (Adapted from Wikimedia Commons)

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