People rowing among colorful bald cypress, Xuancheng, Anhui, China

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Paddling a painted forest. 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.

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