SEATTLE — A rare and endangered tree has been cut down and stolen from the Washington Park Arboretum, according to the University of Washington Botanic Gardens.
"The UW Botanic Gardens regrets to inform our community that a rare Giant cypress or Tibetan cypress tree (Cupressus gigantea) was recently cut down and stolen from the Washington Park Arboretum, presumably to be used as a Christmas tree," UW Botanic Gardens said in a social media post Monday.
Tibetan cypress trees are an endangered species in the wild, grown locally with seeds collected in China by the Rhododendron Species Botanical Garden in Federal Way.
The stolen tree was planted back in 2022 and is 5 feet tall and "roughly 8 years old."
UW Botanic Gardens shared before-and-after images that showed what the tree looked like before the theft, and the small stump that was left after the tree was stolen.
"This is a good reminder that the Washington Park Arboretum is a living museum of many diverse tree and plant species. We ask our visitors and neighbors to help us preserve these important plant collections by reporting any suspicious activity," UW Botanic Gardens added in its social media post.
Anyone with information about the tree thefts is asked to contact the UW Botanic Gardens at uwbgfac@uw.edu.
