Colorful bald cypress, Xuancheng, Anhui, China Nov 4, 2026

Colorful bald cypress, Xuancheng, Anhui, China

People paddle through a glowing maze of bald cypress in Xuancheng, Anhui, where autumn transforms flooded woodlands into a tapestry of amber, copper, and deep rust. Known scientifically as "Taxodium distichum," bald cypress is unusual among conifers because it sheds its soft, feathery needles each fall, turning reddish-brown before they drop. In North America, it is famous for thriving in swamps, floodplains, and other wet habitats, often developing knobby root projections called "knees" that rise above the surrounding soil and water.

© Jackal Pan/Getty Images

palette

Today in History

Nov 4, 2018And they’re off!
Nov 4, 2019Stepping stones in Tollymore Forest Park, Northern Ireland
Nov 4, 2020Caribou on the move
Nov 4, 2021Diwali
Nov 4, 2022A century since Tut s tomb was discovered
Nov 4, 2023National Bison Day
Nov 4, 2024Grasmere, Lake District, Cumbria, England
Nov 4, 2025Tower Bridge, London, England

More Desktop Wallpapers:

Dec 11, 2018‘The mountains are calling’
Mar 29, 2022Northern coast of Colombia
Feb 18, 2024World Whale Day
Mar 17, 2023St. Patricks Day in County Waterford, Ireland
Sep 11, 2022Patriot Day
Jan 19, 2021The ruins of a Maya superpower
Aug 10, 2018Assembling the Smithsonian
Feb 23, 2026Great white egret, Upper Bavaria, Germany
May 2, 2018Mackerel forming a bait ball to avoid predators
Feb 11, 2019There’s a dog in there somewhere
Oct 19, 2018Portland celebrates its bounty
Aug 26, 2023Museum Night in Berlin
Jun 13, 2020A gorge-ous mill in the Causses
Jan 2, 2021A universe underground
Aug 22, 2018Summer’s in home stretch
Oct 23, 2021Eurasian scops owl
Aug 27, 2025World Lake Day in the Faroe Islands
Jul 3, 2024World Meerkat Day
Mar 13, 2021All hail the king of shrubs
Jun 29, 2023International Day of the Tropics
Jun 5, 2018Up, up, and away for Hot Air Balloon Day
Oct 18, 2021A Welsh wonder turns 70
Apr 15, 2019Celebrating World Art Day
Oct 1, 2026Yosemite National Park anniversary
Jan 11, 2022Porcupine
May 23, 2026World Turtle Day
Sep 1, 2020National Mushroom Month
May 31, 2023World Otter Day
Apr 12, 2025International Day of Human Space Flight
Sep 26, 2019Kelp buddies