Guinness World Record about Longest living creature | News about Red Sandalwood

Longest living creature Jonathan tortoise

News:

Tortoise 'Jonathan' has been named as the world's oldest living terrestrial animal by the Guinness Book of World Records. It is believed that it was born in 1832.

Jonathan's age is said to be 190 years in 2022, this tortoise is on St. Helena Island of the British Overseas Territory, and it was brought to St. Helena from Seychelles in 1882. He is the 'Oldest Chelonian' according to the title given in official records.

The Chelonians are a category that includes all turtles, terrapins, and tortoises, before which the oldest Chelonian was Tui Malila, which is estimated to be 188 years old. It was given to the royal family of Tonga by Captain Cook in 1777. He remained in the care of this family until he died in 1965.

What is the use of red sandalwood? And what are the main reasons for this decrease?

News:

Recently, the red sanders have been once again included in the IUCN Red List of Endangered, before it was classified as Near Threatened in 2018.

According to the latest IUCN estimates, their population has declined by 50%-80% over the past several decades.

 

Know about Red Sandalwood:

Red sandalwood is an Indian endemic tree species found in a limited geographical range in the Eastern Ghats; its scientific name is 'Pterocarpus santalinus'. This tree is also found in the tropical dry deciduous forests of Palkonda and Seshachalam hill ranges of Andhra Pradesh in India and also in Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka.

It is also listed under Appendix-2 of CITES (The Convention of International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) generally growing in red soil in hot and dry climates, rocky, degraded, and fallow lands.

Red sandalwood is known for its rich color and healing properties. It is in high demand for cosmetics, medicinal and wood products, and musical instruments throughout Asia, especially in China and Japan. Its popularity can be gauged from the fact that the price of a ton of red sandalwood is seen in the international market between 50 lakh and 10 million.

 

Use of Red Sandalwood:

The wood found in the center of the stem of red sandalwood is used as medicine and as a dye.

Red sandalwood is also used for digestive system problems, edema, cough, and blood purification.

Its wood is considered great for musical instruments and high-quality furniture.

The main reasons for the reduction of Red Sandalwood:

This species of tree is decreasing in its natural habitat due to over-exploitation.

The slow growth and continuous harvesting of the species do not give the species time to recover naturally.

Due to the grazing of cattle in the forests of Red Sandalwood, even small plants are destroyed before they can grow.

Despite its international trade being banned, the illegal trade continues.

 

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