Author Topic: Animals Sure To Survive The Apocalypse (Read 1537 times)

islander · « **on:** October 14, 2013, 06:24:10 PM »

6 Extreme Animals Sure To Survive The Apocalypse

If we've learned anything from science class, it's that nature is constantly trying to kill us. No matter how hard it tries though, it will never take down these animals.

The Devil Worm

Can survive: Crippling pressure, lack of oxygen, high temperature.

This species of nematode, only recently discovered in 2011, has been found living up to 2.2 miles below the surface of the Earth. It blew away the previous record for multicellular organisms by a full mile. These worms spend their lives in total darkness, drinking 12,000 year old water and eating simple bacteria.

Photo Credit: blogspot.com

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islander · « **Reply #1 on:** October 14, 2013, 06:31:54 PM »

The Himalayan Jumping Spider

Can survive: Low pressure, freezing temperatures.

The polar opposite of the devil worm, this spider holds the record for the animal that claims residency at a higher point than any other (4.1 miles above sea level). Itâ€™s able to survive long periods without food, freezing temperatures, and a distinct lack of atmospheric pressure. The only sources of nutrition available to the Himalayan jumping spider are the tiny insects that get blown up the mountain by the high winds.

Photo Credit: Gavin Maxwell/naturepl.com | Via: bbc.co.uk 2013

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islander · « **Reply #2 on:** October 14, 2013, 06:35:40 PM »

The Immortal Jellyfish

Can survive: The aging process.

These jellyfish have the ability to revert back to their infant stages in adverse conditions, making them effectively immortal. There doesn't seem to be any limit on the number of times that they are able to revert back to their infancy. Unfortunately, they're highly vulnerable to predation and disease every time they live out their immature, smaller stages.

Photo Credit: imgur.com

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islander · « **Reply #3 on:** October 14, 2013, 06:41:15 PM »

The Red Flat Bark Beetle

Can survive: Extreme cold.

This insect, which is native to the northern areas of Alaska and Canada, is able to resist temperatures up to -150 degrees Celsius (-238 Fahrenheit) by producing an antifreeze protein that prevents the crystallization of its blood. Its blood is also fortified with glycerol, which further halts freezing.

Photo Credit: wordpress.com

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islander · « **Reply #4 on:** October 14, 2013, 06:43:33 PM »

The Pompeii Worm

Can survive: Extreme heat, variance in temperature.

These deep-sea worms live exclusively in thermal vents in the ocean floor. Their tails are in the vents, which achieve temperatures up to 176 degrees Fahrenheit. Their heads however, poke out of the vents in order for the pompeii worms to capture prey. This results in half of their bodies experiencing temperatures over 100 degrees lower. It's thought that their resistance to heat is due to a coating of specialized bacteria on their bodies, which may provide a large degree of insulation for the worm.

Photo Credit: tumblr.com

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islander · « **Reply #5 on:** October 14, 2013, 06:45:44 PM »

The Tardigrade

Can survive: Basically anything.

These millimeter long, segmented animals can survive just about everything. Temperatures between just above absolute zero and 300 degrees Fahrenheit are no problem. 1200 times atmospheric pressure? The tardigrade just shrugs it off. It doesnâ€™t really care about dehydration either, seeing as it can go 10 years without water. 1,000 times the lethal dose of radiation for humans is another non-factor. When testing the true extent of the tardigrade's resilience, scientists went so far as to send it to outer space in 2007. The result? Most of the tardigrades that went on the mission came back entirely unscathed. Plus they're kind of weirdly adorable.

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hubag bohol · « **Reply #6 on:** October 14, 2013, 07:57:15 PM »

Latest update on our champion species...

The teeny-tiny Tardigrade is the toughest critter on Earth...and beyond ( That's Wild! )

Not completely soft and squishy, some Tardigrades have armored skin and protruding spikes. Photo by Ambergold.ru (Ambergold.ru)

http://www.al.com/
By Harry Tabb on October 14, 2013 at 4:30 AM, updated October 14, 2013 at 5:14 AM

In this blog I like to feature natural wonders great and small, and "small" is certainly the correct word to use this time. One of the most remarkably amazing animals on this planet, and on at least one occasion not on this planet, the Tardigrade, or "Water Bear," is only about one-fourth to one-third the size of a flea. What makes that interesting is the fact that despite it's size, it has a full set of eyes, arms, legs, claws, internal organs, etc..., and is the one of the smallest creatures on earth to be so well developed. It's tiny size, though, is only a very minor thing compared to everything else that makes it so very fascinating.

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hubag bohol · « **Reply #7 on:** October 14, 2013, 07:58:31 PM »

Water bears can live almost anywhere, able to thrive in places where very little else can even survive.

The 1,100+ species of Water bears can be found almost anywhere on Earth, including many places where almost no other life can survive. "Extremeophiles" are those weird species that thrive in very extreme environments, such as bacteria that live in icebergs or worms that gather around the volcanic vents at the bottom of the ocean. Most of these species are highly adapted to living in one particular such extreme environment, but the Water bear can live in almost any environment, making it a member of a very exclusive club, the Poly-extremeophiles. Not only can they live almost anywhere, not much can even kill them. They are widely regarded as the toughest creatures on this planet.

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hubag bohol · « **Reply #8 on:** October 14, 2013, 07:59:55 PM »

An electron microscope is handy for photographing these amazing, yet very tiny animals. This little guy is practically posing for the camera. Photo by Science Photo Library

From the bottom of the sea to the tops of the Himalayas, all they seem to need is a little bit of moisture and a little bit to eat, and they only need these about once per decade or so to survive. One captive specimen even lasted 120 years! How can this be? Well, they cheat, in a way. The natural lifespans of the various Tardigrade species range from as little as a month to as long as a year or two, but the fun part is that they don't do all of their living in one uninterrupted period of time. When things become unpleasant for them, Tardigrades have the amazing ability to "hit the pause button" on their lives and nearly instantly eject around 99.7% of the water in their bodies, dehydrating themselves on the spot.

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hubag bohol · « **Reply #9 on:** October 14, 2013, 08:01:02 PM »

Once in this dehydrated state, known as "cryptobiosis," they become immune to pretty much everything that they aren't already immune to, such as being broiled at 300 degrees, frozen to one degree above absolute zero, crushed under 6000 Atmospheres of pressure, poisoned, blasted with 500 times the amount of radiation needed to kill a human, soaked with powerful acid, or even being left out in the hard vacuum of space. Bear in mind that they can already survive most of these things for awhile when wide awake! They really have been put out in space, too, in a little box attached to the side of the International Space Station, with no air, gravity, insulation from the swings in temperature, or protection from the unfiltered cosmic rays of the sun. Ten days later, the Water Bears were not only still alive and unharmed, they laid some eggs not long after having been brought back inside for observation.

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hubag bohol · « **Reply #10 on:** October 14, 2013, 08:01:50 PM »

On their eight stubby little legs, Water bears lumber along in a cute sort of bear-like way, which is how they got their name. Small yet abundant, it is possible to find them all over the world, including most of Alabama. If you would like to see some, find some moss or lichen, and scrape some bits of it into a container. Add a bit of rainwater to make it very moist but not submerged, and wait about 36 hours. You'll need a strong magnifying glass or low-powered microscope, but a careful inspection should reveal some tiny little brown critters romping about and having a grand time. Let them dry out again, save the container, and show them off to your grandkids someday. They'll survive the wait. Being active only a week at a time per decade, a Water bear can probably live over 700 years.

That's Wild!

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Author Topic: Animals Sure To Survive The Apocalypse (Read 1537 times)

islander

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