Some creatures are capable of going over 30 years without drinking or even eating anything. The majority of animals can’t last more than a day or two without food, but some can survive for months or years without food and water because of their metabolic pathways.
Which animal can survive for the longest time without food and water?
Tardigrades are also known as water bears or moss piglets, but the actual word ‘tardigrade’ means ‘slow paced’. It was originally an adjective applied to tortoises, but since 1800 it has been the name of these microscopic creatures
Tardigrades are also known as water bears or moss piglets, but the actual word ‘tardigrade’ means ‘slow paced’. It was originally an adjective applied to tortoises, but since 1800 it has been the name of these microscopic creatures.
The eight-legged invertebrates can withstand extreme temperature changes, radiation exposure, and even the vacuum of space for up to 30 years without food or water.
Researchers claim that the sturdy tardigrade might survive even the most disastrous astronomical occurrences.
At only about 0.5mm long, tardigrades aren’t big, but they can be found around the world in a wide range of environments.
fact, these invertebrates are so tiny, you need a microscope to be able to see them. But despite being smaller than a poppy seed, tardigrades look pretty fierce when you view them up close: They have claws like bears and daggerlike teeth that tear into and suck the juices out of moss and algae.
Tardigrades can be found almost anywhere on Earth, from the top of the Himalaya mountain range to the bottom of the sea, from icy Antarctica to bubbling hot springs
Tardigrades were discovered in 1773 by the German zoologist Johann August Ephraim Goeze, who dubbed them “little water bear.” Three years later, Italian biologist Lazzaro Spallanzani named the group “Tardigrada,” or “slow stepper,” for their toddling gait, according to the Science Education Resource Center at Carleton College (SERC). There are currently about 1,300 known tardigrade species within the Tardigrada phylum (a classification category) according to the Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS), a resource for species names and classifications created by a partnership of U.S. federal agencies.
