The largest known plant on Earth - a seaweed roughly three times the size of Manhattan - has been discovered off the coast of Australia, writes the BBC on Wednesday.
Using genetic testing, scientists have determined that a large underwater meadow in Western Australia is actually a plant.
It is believed to have been propagated from a single seed for at least 4500 years.
Seaweed covers about 200 square kilometers, said researchers from the University of Western Australia.
The team found the discovery accidentally in Shark Bay, about 800km north of Perth.
also
The longest plant in the world is over 120 kilometers
They set out to understand the genetic diversity of the species - also known as weeds - which are commonly found along parts of Australia's coast.
The researchers collected seedlings from across the bay and examined 18 genetic markers to create a "fingerprint" from each sample.
They had aimed to find out how many plants made up the meadow.
"The answer shocked us, it was just one!" said Jane Edgeloe, lead author of the study.
also
Australian farm grows the world's largest blueberry
The species generally grows at a rate of up to 35 cm per year. That's how researchers estimated it took 4500 years to expand to its current size.
The research is published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B.
