Great Basin bristlecone pines are considered "the world's oldest known living thing"

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Bristlecone pines found in Great Basin National Park and in the White Mountains of California are upwards or 3,000-5,000 years old.  The significant age attained by these trees is due to their unusual ability to adapt to the environment. Bristlecones often live in isolation, where trees of other species cannot survive.  Even after their death, they may even remain standing for thousands of additional years. This particular stand occupies a very narrow elevation band between 9,000-11,000 ft-msl on the slopes of Wheeler Peak, Nevada.