A study of Humboldt State University has found that the tallest redwood tree in Muir Woods is 777 years old, and not 1,500 years old, as was previously recorded. The study published in the San Francisco Chronicle on Sunday is the first determination of the age of trees in Muir Woods.

The research established that the oldest and biggest tree found in Muir Woods identified as Tree 76 standing at a height of 249 feet was born seven centuries later than originally believed. This also reveals that the redwood giant is much younger than the old-growth trees farther north.

The new analysis was undertaken under the ‘Save the Redwoods League’ project of San Francisco which is documenting the redwood forests in the state to ascertain their age, size and health.

Allyson Carroll, tree specialist studied dendrochronology. She compared the rings from Muir Woods’ tallest Tree 76 in Cathedral Grove to a database of samples taken from redwoods throughout the state.

Carroll’s work revealed that the tallest redwoods at Muir Woods are ‘only babes in the woods’. She explained that though the California’s coast redwood trees can grow taller than a 30-floor building and can survive more than 2,000 years, the Tree 76 is just 777 years old.

The tree rings analyses was also undertaken to estimate the effects of climate change on the redwoods as the tree rings are larger during wet years and smaller during dry years.

Emily Burns, Science Director for Save the Redwoods League stated that the relative youth of the tree can be attributed to a fire, flood or some other catastrophic event.