Tardigrades: Fossil of tough micro-animal discovered in amber
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Tardigrades: Fossil of tough micro-animal discovered in amber


Paradoryphoribius chronocaribbeus

Side view of Paradoryphoribius chronocaribbeus

Ninon Robin (Harvard/NJIT)

A new species of tardigrade – microscopic animals that resemble a cross between a pig and a bear – has been discovered in 16-million-year-old Dominican amber.

Tardigrades – also known as water bears or moss piglets – are renowned for their hardiness. In 2007, some were sent into orbit and became the first known animals to survive the vacuum of space.

Molecular studies suggest that tardigrades originated about 500 million years ago, but their microscopic size and tendency to rapidly decay after death makes their fossils hard to come …



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