Nine out of 13 of Africa’s oldest and largest baobab trees have died in the past decade, it has been reported. These trees, aged between 1,100 and 2,500 years old, appear to be victims of climate change. Scientists speculate that warming temperatures have either killed the trees directly or have made them weaker and more susceptible to drought, diseases, fire or wind.

Old baobabs are not the only trees which are affected by climatic changes. Ponderosa pine and pinyon forests in the American West are dying at an increasing rate as the summers get warmer in the region. In Hawaii, Ohi’a trees are also dying at faster rates than previously recorded.

There are nine species of baobab tree in the world: one in mainland Africa, Adansonia digitata, (the species that can grow to the largest size and to the oldest age); six in Madagascar; one that grows across the Middle East and parts of Asia; and one in Australia. The mainland African baobab was named after the French botanist Michel Adanson, who described the baobab trees in Senegal.

The African baobab is a remarkable species. Not only because of its size and lifespan but also in the special way it grows multiple fused stems. In the space between these stems (called false cavities) bark grows, which is unique to the baobab.

Since baobabs produce only faint growth rings, researchers used radiocarbon dating to analyse samples taken from different parts of each tree’s trunk and determined that the oldest (which is now dead) was more that 2,500 years old.

They also have more than 300 uses. The leaves, rich in iron, can be boiled and eaten like spinach. The seeds can be roasted to make a coffee substitute or pressed to make oil for cooking or cosmetics. The fruit pulp has six times more vitamin C than oranges, making it an important nutritional complement in Africa and in the European, US and Canadian markets.

The fruit of the baobab tree is rich in vitamin C, making it an important nutritional supplement (Aida Cuní Sanchez)

Locally, fruit pulp is made into juice, jam, or fermented to make beer. The young seedlings have a taproot which can be eaten like a carrot. The flowers are also edible. The roots can be used to make red dye, and the bark to make ropes and baskets.

Baobabs also have medicinal properties, and their hollow trunks can be used to store water. Baobab crowns also provide shade, making them an idea place for a market in many rural villages. And of course, the trade in baobab products provides an income for local communities.

Michoacán tree protectors Show all 10 1 /10 Michoacán tree protectors Michoacán tree protectors Women work in the 'San Francisco' tree nursery in Cheran, Michoacan State. After Cherán's uprising in 2011, the town built the nursery, employing men and women of the community Cesar Rodriguez/Bloomberg Michoacán tree protectors Members of the local police force, known as the Ronda Comunitaria, guard a checkpoint in the town. The Ronda Comunitaria is made up of local residents from the community Cesar Rodriguez/Bloomberg Michoacán tree protectors Cherán is one of the most dangerous states in Mexico. This year, Mexico homicides climbed to 12,155 through June, according to the nation's interior ministry, up 31 per cent from the same period in 2016 Cesar Rodriguez/Bloomberg Michoacán tree protectors The nursery was completed in 2013 and the community estimates that it has produced more than 1 million trees Cesar Rodriguez/Bloomberg Michoacán tree protectors Members of the Ronda Comunitaria guard a checkpoint. The Mexican government recognises Cherán as an autonomous, self-governing community Cesar Rodriguez/Bloomberg Michoacán tree protectors For the past six years, the townspeople claim they have dodged the statistics that plague the rest of Mexico. Pedro Chavez Sanchez, a member of Cherán's elder council, spoke to photojournalist César Rodríguez, on how Cherán succeeds in spite of the violence growing in the rest of Mexico. 'Things cannot change unless you change things within, and that is how we did it. We worked as a community to create the change we wanted. We listened to our elders, we trusted in our customs. If we have a problem, it is our problem, we solve it as a whole. We have no political parties, and we have no organised crime' Cesar Rodriguez/Bloomberg Michoacán tree protectors Members of the Forest Keepers patrol in search of illegal loggers in Cheran Cesar Rodriguez/Bloomberg Michoacán tree protectors Members of the Forest Keepers apprehend an illegal logger while on patrol. Depending on the extent of damage to the land, illegal loggers are fined and could face jail time Cesar Rodriguez/Bloomberg Michoacán tree protectors A Forest Keeper checks a permit from men thought to be illegal loggers. The permit was determined invalid, and their tools were confiscated Cesar Rodriguez/Bloomberg Michoacán tree protectors 'Since the very beginning we have wanted three things: security, justice, and the restoration of our land,' Pedro Chavez Sanches says. 'Security was made possible thanks to our community patrol. The reconstitution of our land has been made possible because of the tree nursery. Justice, however, is not that easy. The people of Cherán have lost loved ones, have family members that remain missing, they have pain, so justice is the hardest to reach, but we are progressing' Cesar Rodriguez/Bloomberg

Baobab trees also play a big part in the cultural life of their communities, being at the centre of many African oral stories. They even appear in The Little Prince, the most famous book by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry.

Cultivating baobab

Baobab trees are not only useful to humans, they are key ecosystem elements in the dry African savannas. Importantly, baobab trees keep soil conditions humid, favour nutrient recycling and avoid soil erosion. They also act as an important source of food, water and shelter for a wide range of animals, including birds, lizards, monkeys and even elephants – which can eat their bark to provide some moisture when there is no water nearby. The flowers are pollinated by bats, which travel long distances to feed on their nectar. Numerous insects also live on the baobab tree.

Ancient as they are, baobab trees can be cultivated, as some communities in West Africa have done for generations. Some farmers are discouraged by the fact that they can take 15-20 years to fruit – but recent research has shown by grafting the branches of fruiting trees to seedlings they can fruit in five years.

Many “indigenous” trees show great variation in fruit morphological and nutritional properties – and it takes years of research and selection to find the best varieties for cultivation. This process, called domestication, does not refer to genetic engineering, but the selection and cultivation of the best trees of those available in nature. It seems straightforward, but it takes time to find the best trees – meanwhile many of them are dying.

The death of these oldest and largest baobab trees is very sad, but hopefully the news will motivate us to protect the world’s remaining large baobabs and start a process of close monitoring of their health. And, hopefully, if scientists are able to perfect the process of identifying the best trees to cultivate, one day they will become as common in our supermarkets as apples or oranges.