A community-driven quest to spot, photograph, and map the world's most magnificently absurd trees. One gloriously spiky specimen at a time.
Three simple steps to join the world's most dedicated tree-spotting community.
Encounter a monkey puzzle in the wild. Front gardens, parks, churchyards. They're everywhere once you start looking.
Take a photo. The more absurd the setting, the better. Bonus points for dramatic lighting.
Pin it on the map with location and details. Join the world's most affectionate tree surveillance network.
How to recognise a monkey puzzle in the wild. Not that you'll need much help. They're not exactly subtle.
Triangular, razor-sharp, and overlapping like medieval armour. They cover every branch so completely that no sensible animal would attempt to climb it. Hence the name.
Young trees look like Christmas trees designed by an engineer with a ruler obsession. Older specimens lose their lower branches and resemble a green umbrella abandoned on a very tall stick.
Thick, deeply ridged, and vaguely reptilian. If a tree trunk could develop wrinkles, this is what 200 million years of experience looks like.
Arranged in near-perfect horizontal whorls, like the floors of a very odd building. Each tier grows outward, curves down, then sweeps back up at the tips. Theatrical.
Female cones are the size of a coconut and sit atop branches like small, spiny grenades. They can weigh up to 1.5kg. They do occasionally fall on people.
Disproportionately found in suburban front gardens, vicarage grounds, and municipal parks across Britain. If you spot one growing wild, you're probably in Chile.
From Mesozoic forests to Victorian dinner parties to suburban front gardens, the monkey puzzle has had quite the journey. And it's not done yet.
Read the full story of these magnificent oddballsKnow someone who'd appreciate the world's most magnificently absurd trees? Share Monkey Puzzle Watch and help us build the definitive map of these prehistoric survivors.
The Araucaria lineage dates back over 200 million years. Their relatives lived alongside dinosaurs, and now their descendants live next to wheelie bins.
Source: Kew Science (Plants of the World Online) — Araucaria araucana
