The Vampire Tree

Have you ever been walking in the woods and come across a decaying old tree stump that simply sits there looking old and rotten? It occurs frequently. What you may not realize is that there's a chance that dead tree isn't quite dead. Researchers in New Zealand discovered a kauri tree stump in a forest, and while the top appeared to be dead, beneath life was still alive.

The tree's roots had long before been grafted into a vast network of other roots that belonged to dozens, if not hundreds, of other plants and trees. This root network effectively created a subterranean superorganism by sharing nutrients among all components. Despite the fact that the tree had been killed and no longer had leaves to rely on due to photosynthesis, the other trees in the network were able to share nutrients and keep that stump alive.

Though in an ideal world, each member organism would give resources, the nearly dead kauri tree had turned into a parasite, like a vampire, living beyond death by draining life from its friends. However, it may also be contributing by allowing nutrients to move between all components for the benefit of the entire.