January 28th, 2011 – Of Moss and Water Bears

Today’s post was inspired by a conversation last night about these fascinating organisms called Tardigrades or Water Bears. These little microscopic eight-legged animals are the only known organism to have survived in space, fully exposed to solar radiation, they can survive temperatures from almost absolute zero to 150 degrees Centigrade, repair their own DNA, and survive in a dehydrated stasis for years to then return to life when rehydrated as if by magic! One of their favourite habitats is moss, so there’s probably some in today’s photo. Ten points if you can spot one…

Canon EOS 550D, Canon 50mm f/1.8 II, 50mm, F 1.8, 1/4000s, ISO 100