Walking Roots

This palm tree in Langosta has what appears to be roots that are walking away from center of the tree, and, indeed, the roots form an open cone and replace the trunk at the center.

Costa Rica has more than 10,000 different plant species. It has only 0.03% of the earth's land area (about the size of West Virginia or Switzerland) but has 6% of the earth's biodiversity. The country plans to plant 7 million new trees this year, up from 5 million new trees planted in 2007, as part of its effort to become the world's first carbon-neutral country by the 2020's.

This tree, known locally as chonta, maquenque or palmito amargo, can reach heights of 25 meters, or more than 80 feet. Its scientific name is Socratea exorrhiza, named after Socrates.