There is something majestic and awe-inspiring about size.
Astronauts often come home with a new perspective in life after traversing the vastness of space
and realising that our planet, and even us, are just microscopic specks in the grand scheme
of things.
We don’t even need to look as far as space.
Here at home, the Grand Canyon, with its sheer immensity, can remind us about just how small
we are in this planet and that there is a wider world out there.
The depth of the Great Barrier Reef and the monolithic elephants are but a few of the
things that can literally dwarf us and remind us of the captivating beauty of Mother Nature.
In today’s list, we are going to allow ourselves to be awestruck and be immensely humbled as
we countdown to 10 of the world’s largest things found in nature!
10.
INGA FALLS When we talk about large waterfalls the image
that instantly pops up in mind are either Niagara Falls or Victoria Falls.
They are, after all, gigantic compared to any falls on earth.
We would not immediately think of Zaire’s Inga Falls as the largest waterfall on the
planet because, compared to Victoria and Niagara, well, it really cannot compete because of
its drop measuring at 21 meters and an expanse of only 4 kilometres wide.
You might probably be thinking that we’re nuts about putting this on the list but hear
us out.
Inga Falls makes this list because it is the only waterfall on the planet that moves the
largest amount of water.
To put it into perspective, Victoria Falls moves a little over 38,000 cubic feet of water;
Niagara Falls, on the other hand moves around 85,000 cubic feet of water.
To think that these two giants are among the tallest and widest falls in the world, they
should at least be pouring out double or triple the number that they are currently spewing.
Enter Inga Falls moving over 900,000 cubic feet of water per second which is at least
10 times more than what Niagara Falls moves.
9.
SEQUOIA TREES It is a known fact that Sequoia trees are
the largest trees on this planet but what adds to their impressive size is that they
are the largest living things living on earth in terms of volume.
These green giants can grow up to, at least, 160 to 275 feet tall with an average diameter
between 20 to 26 feet.
Now that’s a lot of space!
And, like any other tree, Sequoias are aged by determining the number of rings they have
inside and the oldest living Sequoia is estimated to be around 3500 years old!
Today, the extant species of the Sequoia can only be found in Northern California and Southwestern
Oregon in nature reserves that make sure that these trees remain healthy and alive for generations.
Interesting fact, “Sequoia” is the only word in the English language that contains
all five vowels!
8.
FISHLAKE NATIONAL FOREST Known as the heaviest organism known to man,
the Fishlake National Forest is a single clonal colony of a male quaking aspen affectionately
called the Trembling Giant.
Its monolithic root system is comprised of about 47,000 stems that has created the “forest”
– but, when all the individual stems, trunks, and leaves are put together as a single unit,
this giant will weight at just about 6600 short tons!
This organism is so heavy that the Blue Whale’s weight of 200 tons shrinks in comparison.
Even more impressive about the Fishlake National Forest is that researchers and conservationists
estimate its age to at least 80,000 years old making it not just the heaviest living
organism on the planet but also the oldest one.
7.
SON DOONG CAVE Discovered in 1991 by a local man, the Son
Doong Cave of Vietnam is the largest cave to have been found on the planet.
The cave itself is at least 5 kilometres long with ceilings that are at least 300 metres
high; ceilings that boast natural skylights because of weaker limestones being washed
away over thousands of years above-head.
Steep and sharp inclines and acoustics make the interior of the cave a little eerie and
otherworldly.
Also, right below is a large subterranean river that adds to just how large and intimidating
the cave is.
Experts speculate that the cave may have been discovered a little sooner had it not been
for the rough terrain and its impossibly remote location.
6.
SALAR DE UYUNI SALT FLATS Sitting on top of a plateau in Southwestern
Bolivia, the Salar de Uyuni salt flats is the largest known salt flat on the planet
with a surface area of over 10,000 square kilometres.
Also, atop a plateau that has an elevation of 3600 meters, twice higher than Denver,
Colorado.
While it does produce tons and tons of salt, the Flats is also known for an enormous, untapped
reserve of lithium just beneath its surface.
Experts even estimate that the lithium reserve beneath Uyuni make up for one-half to two-thirds
of the world’s reserves.
Despite appearing to be a desolate wasteland of salt, Uyuni is also home to the world’s
largest pink flamingo habitats and at least 80 other avian species.
And if that isn’t enough to impress you, for a large part of the year, a thin layer
of water covers the surface of the flats that turns it into a reflective surface and during
these seasons it appears to be the world’s largest mirror – or, at least, the world’s
largest reflective surface.
5.
SALTWATER CROCODILE The extremely aggressive and territorial saltwater
crocodile takes the number 5 spot as the largest terrestrial and riparian predator in the world,
as well as the largest living reptile on earth.
With the male of the species being the larges, measuring at lengths no less than 22 feet
and weighing at least 4400 pounds, these reptilian ambush predators are much more terrifying
in the water – ambushing their unsuspecting prey with lightning speed and tearing them
apart with razor-sharp teeth.
The saltwater crocodile is known for attacking indiscriminately on land as well and have
been known to take down wild boars and water buffalos.
In water, there have been instances that they have overpowered sharks.
4.
AFRICAN BUSH ELEPHANT Easily the African Bush Elephant takes the
number 4 spot for being the largest land animal on earth.
While there are several other species of elephants, this one takes the cake because this species
can grow up to 13 feet high and reach a length of at least 24 feet.
With their massive size comes a massive weight of 11 tons that helps them exhibit extraordinary
strength because these grey giants can lift more than 400 pounds with just their trunks.
Endemic to African savannahs and rain forests, the African Bush Elephant requires a diet
of at least 350 pounds of vegetation per day in order to keep their muscular physiques
at an optimum.
And among all mammals on earth, female African Bush Elephants hold a record of 22 months
of gestation before giving birth.
Unfortunately, because of their highly valued ivory tusks, these species are considered
as highly threatened because of illegal poaching and the black market trade of ivory.
Many of these species, in order to keep their population going, have been kept in highly
protected reserves where they are under watch and cared for 24/7.
3.
BLUE WHALE Of course this list would not be complete
without the mammalian kingdom’s heaviest hitter: the Blue Whale.
Before their species were saved in the 1960s by the international community, these giants
of the ocean were threatened with extinction by hunting and the boom of the whaling industry
which peaked in the 1930s.
Recorded as the largest creature in the world, a blue whale calf can measure up to 25 feet
in length and weigh about 3 tons when it is born.
In its first year alone, these whales gain 200 pounds of weight per day.
An adult blue whale, on the other hand, can grow up to at least 100 feet in length and
weigh up to 200 tons.
The tongue of a single, full grown whale is estimated to weigh as much as an adult elephant
and their hearts can have the estimated weight of a car.
Perhaps the only whale species whose calls are the loudest, scientists have recorded
that they can hear each other’s songs from up to 1000 miles away.
Gentle and gigantic, being in the actual presence of these baleen behemoths can remind you of
just how large and majestic the world we live in really is.
2.
CORPSE FLOWER The Rafflesia, or the aptly named Corpse Flower,
is the largest blooming flower on the planet.
Weighing about 15 pounds, these crimson flowers have a blossom that reaches 3-feet wide.
Strangely looking like a creature from another planet, the Corpse Flower – as so it is
named – does not smell like a night blooming cereus or share the same perfume-like fragrance
of jasmine.
Instead, like a practical joke on our senses, they have the festering scent of rotting flesh.
Some people who have been in its presence even describe the smell as those of rotting
eggs left under the sun.
However, this scent is without purpose.
With its corpse-like odour, the flower attracts insects that help in pollinating it.
1.
HONEY FUNGUS Don’t be fooled by the tiny, honey coloured
mushrooms it produces.
In 1998, the US Forest Service set out to determine the cause of 112 tree deaths within
the Malheur National Forest in Oregon.
The team discovered that the tree deaths covered at least 3.7 square miles and was caused by
the so-called Honey Fungus or Armillaria Solidipes.
This single organism of fungus was able to occupy about 2384 acres within the said 3.7
square miles and was able to kill at least 61 trees in the park.
Quite impressive for a fungus.
The researchers who discovered the Honey Fungus determined it to be the largest organism on
the planet – and from their collected specimen, they have also determined that, at its growth
rate, the fungus could at least be 2400 years old as of 1998 and could, quite possibly,
be as old as 8650 years old.
This fungus consists mainly of lace-like, black rhizomorphs that spread below ground
to search for a host that they will latch onto and feed from, sometimes their underground
network – as evidenced by the tree deaths in Malheur National Park – can span acres;
a feat that no common fungus is unable to accomplish.
Above ground, their presence is usually spotted by the appearance of clusters of – as mentioned
earlier – honey coloured mushrooms from which it gets its namesake.