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An ancient tree that contains a record of a reversal of Earth’s magnetic field has been discovered in New Zealand. The tree—an Agathis australis, better known as its Māori name kauri—was found in Ngawha, on New Zealand’s North Island, during excavation work for the expansion of a geothermal power plant, stuff.nz reports.

The tree, which had been buried in 26 feet of soil, measures eight feet in diameter and 65 feet in length. Carbon dating revealed it lived for 1,500 years, between 41,000 and 42,500 years ago.

“There’s nothing like this anywhere in the world,” Alan Hogg, from New Zealand’s University of Waikato, told the website. “This Ngāwhā kauri is unique.”

The lifespan of the kauri tree covers a point in Earth’s history when the magnetic field almost reversed. At this time, the magnetic north and south went on an excursion but did not quite complete a full reversal.

Earth’s magnetic field is thought to be generated by the iron in the planet’s core. As it moves around, it produces electric currents that extend far into space. The magnetic field acts as a barrier, protecting Earth from the solar wind. This is a stream of charged particles from the Sun that could strip away the ozone layer if it were to impact the atmosphere.

When the magnetic field reverses—or attempts to—it gets weaker, leading to more radiation from the Sun getting through. Previously, scientists have linked extinction events to magnetic field reversals.

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“Bees are self-aware, they’re sentient, and they possibly have a primitive form of consciousness,” writes Buchmann. “They solve problems and can think. Bees may even have a primitive form of subjective experiences.”

Evidence supporting insect sentience offers clues to what may be driving “colony collapse disorder”, in which entire honeybee hives die within a single season – a phenomenon that has caused the population of these essential pollinators to precipitously drop over the last two decades. While the cause has been primarily attributed to pesticide use, Buchmann and other scientists argue the decline is also due to psychological stress caused by the brutal practices of industrialized agriculture.

Their work is raising practical and existential quandaries. Can large-scale agriculture and scientific research continue without causing bees to suffer, and is the dominant western culture even capable of accepting that the tiniest of creatures have feelings, too? Buchmann hopes an ethical shift will happen as details about the emotional lives of invertebrates – especially bees – are shared with the public.