The Bear that Wouldn’t Die

Do the tiny aquatic creatures called tardigrades hold the secret to eternal life?

A powerful wave of nostalgia washed over me recently when I discovered that a microscopic animal called a tardigrade had been voted 2025’s ‘Invertebrate of the Year’. In the early 2000s, when we were assembling the research that eventually became BBC’s QI, the tardigrade was our mascot: a creature that most people had never heard of but, which once discovered, is impossible to forget.

What makes them so special?

For a start, tardigrades have some claim to being the toughest animals on the planet. Also known as ‘water bears’ and ‘moss piglets’, they sound cute – but don’t be fooled. They live anywhere there’s water – five miles down in the ocean; on the polar ice caps; in radioactive hot springs; on top of the Himalayas; on forest floors; on the bottom of lakes; on wet beaches; in alpine meadows; in the miniature ponds created in the cups of leaves; in the moss on your roof; on the ground where your dog pees each morning.

…

This is the Subscriber Paywall

Subscriptions are how we pay our journalists. So we make some of our best articles and investigations available exclusively to paying subscribers. This is one of those articles; to read it, sign in or subscribe.

Already a subscriber? Log in now

Subscribe to Byline Times Digital Edition to read this article now

A digital subscription costs £3.95/month or £39.95/year
Find out more and compare our subscriptions

Subscribe and read now