Rare prehistoric Wollemi pine takes root at Long Island arboretum

A tree species that dates back to the age of dinosaurs has found a new home on Long Island.

Two rare Wollemi pines are now growing at Planting Fields Arboretum in Oyster Bay, where staff members are celebrating the arrival of a species once believed to be extinct.

"It was actually around at the time the dinosaurs roamed the Earth," said Vincent Simeone, director of Planting Fields Arboretum. "There was fossil evidence of the tree, but no one thought it was still on Earth."

It was believed that the Wollemi pine had vanished millions of years ago until 1994, when an Australian park ranger discovered a small grove of the trees in a remote canyon. The find was later described as the "botanical find of the century."

The species dates back about 200 million years and is considered a living fossil. 

Fewer than 100 Wollemi pines remain in the wild, according to experts. 

Simeone said he spent 18 years trying to acquire the rare trees for the arboretum and recently succeeded in bringing two specimens to Oyster Bay.

"It really is a story of resilience," Simeone said. "The resilience of the tree that was thought extinct, and the resilience of continuing to try to find this tree and acquire it."

The trees are being carefully tended in two greenhouses, where visitors can view them up close.

The exact location of the remaining wild grove in Australia is kept secret to help protect the endangered species.

"They're so endangered that the site is not even accessible to the public in Australia," Simeone said.

For now, the prehistoric trees are offering Long Islanders a rare glimpse of a species whose roots stretch back to the time of the dinosaurs.