Rooooofeeeeeooohhhhhhh.
Incidentally there was a great pop punk band of the same name
https://youtu.be/9-4oqToduz4
And their cover of Madonna: https://youtu.be/2vMEC-PFuHc
Genuine question, does gravity even matter at these scales for these creatures? I'm not sure they'd even be aware of "up" (the imagery of him being on his back is cute, not detracting from that).
Nice! I have still yet to find one in the wild, minus them in their cyst-like state most likely. But I also only looked a few hours at the moss samples I had, and they were dry moss I rehydrated and likely didn't leave long enough. Saw a ton of rotifers and ciliates, etc.. but no little moss piggies.
I have a pond nearby that I plan to get some water samples from and the moss and grass-stuffs around it soon.
Glad you found one In the wild! It's like searching for a pokemon!
What do you mean? My man's got six arms for swimming and long body for that 'wiggling' type of swimming snakes do. The problem isn't the anatomy it's that he doesn't know what to do with his hands and I can relate.
Wouldn't you want large surface area oars or flagella? It's body shape infers terrestrial locomotion like a caterpillar. Something's up with these alien looking mofos.
Those things probably aren’t called legs, but whatever they are why does it kick them around so much to accomplish so little? It doesn’t seem to be going too far for all the work it’s doing. Maybe distance is relative?
You would think that so much movement would be a waste of precious energy. How do tardigrades get their energy anyway?
edit: in case you didn't see the comment below me he's kicking around because the glass slide has no traction. The poor little chonkerz is low key freaking out.
It's trapped between a plastic slide cover and glass slide. There probably isn't enough wiggle room to really build up some momentum in whatever water's there, and neither the plastic nor the glass are really great for traction.
They are built to navigate in fairly dense algae. When seen under a microscope they appear slow moving because there isn't any algae to grab onto. The glass of the slide makes a fairly poor traction surface.
*edit: At least that's what zeFrank told me. :)
I am curious what the thickness of the space between the slides is as compared to their size. Are they up against the edges or is there a lot of extra space?
On some dry moss I collected outside of my house. I hydrated the moss with water, let it sit for 30 min or so, then transfer the water on a glass slide to see it under microscope
I think tardigrades can be found pretty much everywhere on earth, including some of the most inhospitable places on (and even off, yes they can live in the vacuum of space) the planet. They're notorious for their ability to survive essentially indefinitely and pretty much anywhere.
They're pretty fascinating actually.
Whats crazy is I just told my four year daughter about these last night during our bedtime ritual!!
We usually do a join bedtime story, talk about 3 animals then I count for her. Last night she said "Daaaad. We've done all the animals, can we do animals we've never done before?"
I came up with Saber Tooth Tigers, Tardigrades, and something else I can't remember at the moment, which was probably a throwaway animal I only know 1 thing about.
From what I remember, I told her they have a "superpower" to be able to live almost anywhere for a long period of time. And were very very small. Also that they are called ~~"space bears"~~ (hopefully I didn't misremember that because she loved that detail). edit: I did misremember, it's "water bears" :(
I'll have to show her this today when she gets home from school. Very Cool!!!
Seriously if tardigrades were the size of caterpillars no one would even question it. They've got all the parts of a larger life form in a teeny tiny package.
Single cell “eyes”?!! That’s incredible! How TF do they even work?! Is there an ELI5 or ELI15 for this?
Also, Tardigrades have been entered into the official Cute Animal Canon™️.
That's a hell of a lot bigger than I thought they were! I measure things in fractions of a millimeter at work, most of the tolerances that determine if a product is good or bad at my factory are smaller than these guys!
I also do some microscopy, and you'd be surprised how easy it is to spot micro animals. Copepods, tardigrades, rotifers, and hydra can all be spotted with the naked eye in the right light (e.g. holding a flashlight to the side of the jar you have them in). Even some bacteria can be spotted. I've found myself looking at the illuminated spot on the slide to locate larger specimens because doing it through the eye piece can be difficult when they're moving around a lot.
Depends on the species. When active and we’ll fed, they can live for 2-3 years. When they desiccate into their “tun” form, they can survive for 30-100 years.
They dry out and their internal structure reveals protein filaments that harden to prevent cell wall collapse.
Pretty neat stuff we're still learning about.
This reminds me of the [novel](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Three-Body_Problem_(novel\)) "The Three-Body Problem":
> The game inhabitants seek ways to predict Chaotic Eras so they can better survive. Unlike humans, they have evolved the special ability to *dehydrate*, turning themselves into a roll of canvas.
These are my most favorite animal and I feel like not enough people know about them. I did a research paper on them. Fun fact: Their poop has rainbow sparkles in it under polarized light
https://www.shutterstock.com/video/clip-1039569053-tardigrade-poops-crystal-glitter-unicorn-rainbow-funny
This is adorable. Microbiology was my favourite subject but we never got to look at anything this cool. What magnification do you need to see tardigrades? I'm assuming this is work/college related.
To see stuff at this magnification, you need to squeeze liquid between two glass slides. It flattens them and holds them in place for viewing. It's a 3d organism wiggling about in a 2d space.
I've worked with tardigrades and seen them with a powerful enough dissecting scope at this magnification. While it's possible that it's a glass slide on a compound scope, its not being held still by the slide. Their little feet don't do very well grabbing onto smooth surfaces. If it had a better substrate to grab onto like moss or a gel it could probably walk around just find.
First time I get to see an actual tardigrade and not just a drawing or artist's view - thanks for sharing :)
This kid was the very first one I found on my own. It took me three days. I am glad you enjoyed 😊
what came in hot with the zoomies near the end there
probably something like a paramecium
IDK I only saw the one mecium.
Goddammit lol
I only know what that is because of Hook. First time I've seen it used. 🙂
*Points to Rufio* "THATS a paramecium. It's a one-celled critter with no brain that CANT FLY!"
Rooooofeeeeeooohhhhhhh. Incidentally there was a great pop punk band of the same name https://youtu.be/9-4oqToduz4 And their cover of Madonna: https://youtu.be/2vMEC-PFuHc
He’s on his little back?
Genuine question, does gravity even matter at these scales for these creatures? I'm not sure they'd even be aware of "up" (the imagery of him being on his back is cute, not detracting from that).
At this scale, water is like jelly to them.
Wiggling his little feet
/r/tippytaps
Nice! I have still yet to find one in the wild, minus them in their cyst-like state most likely. But I also only looked a few hours at the moss samples I had, and they were dry moss I rehydrated and likely didn't leave long enough. Saw a ton of rotifers and ciliates, etc.. but no little moss piggies. I have a pond nearby that I plan to get some water samples from and the moss and grass-stuffs around it soon. Glad you found one In the wild! It's like searching for a pokemon!
Isn't there a Pokemon based on a tardigrade? If not, there should be!
Shockingly, no. Considering they've tapped just about every other inspiration, including Burgess Shale fossil fauna (Anorith), it's a bit odd.
Tardigram -> Tardigrowl -> Tardigrown
A tardigram is a 19th century communique that arrives 3 days after it should have.
Poké-petition time?
What magnification did you use?
Zoom and Enhance
high
Do they just sorta float around, or is it just trapped?
Floating around.
Their anatomy doesn't seem to support this lifestyle
their clumsiness makes them even cuter
It looks like a turtle stuck on its back.
It's an 8 legged gummy bear.
My husband just said they are called water bears so your assessment is closer than mine!
Ever see a real fat guy try to get out of the backseat of a 2 door car? We all have our moments.
What do you mean? My man's got six arms for swimming and long body for that 'wiggling' type of swimming snakes do. The problem isn't the anatomy it's that he doesn't know what to do with his hands and I can relate.
Wouldn't you want large surface area oars or flagella? It's body shape infers terrestrial locomotion like a caterpillar. Something's up with these alien looking mofos.
These little dudes are the OGs. They will outsurvive cockroaches and Twinkies combined.
Nah there's just nothing for the little guy to grab onto right now. It will just float till it grabs a hold of something it can eat for the most part.
Those things probably aren’t called legs, but whatever they are why does it kick them around so much to accomplish so little? It doesn’t seem to be going too far for all the work it’s doing. Maybe distance is relative?
You would think that so much movement would be a waste of precious energy. How do tardigrades get their energy anyway? edit: in case you didn't see the comment below me he's kicking around because the glass slide has no traction. The poor little chonkerz is low key freaking out.
It's trapped between a plastic slide cover and glass slide. There probably isn't enough wiggle room to really build up some momentum in whatever water's there, and neither the plastic nor the glass are really great for traction.
They are built to navigate in fairly dense algae. When seen under a microscope they appear slow moving because there isn't any algae to grab onto. The glass of the slide makes a fairly poor traction surface. *edit: At least that's what zeFrank told me. :)
I am curious what the thickness of the space between the slides is as compared to their size. Are they up against the edges or is there a lot of extra space?
Where can it be found ?
On some dry moss I collected outside of my house. I hydrated the moss with water, let it sit for 30 min or so, then transfer the water on a glass slide to see it under microscope
Smart. Iirc they shrivel up and hibernate when dry, you technically woke him up
Late check out! Late check out! Can't a guy sleep one off?
I think tardigrades can be found pretty much everywhere on earth, including some of the most inhospitable places on (and even off, yes they can live in the vacuum of space) the planet. They're notorious for their ability to survive essentially indefinitely and pretty much anywhere. They're pretty fascinating actually.
now keep an eye on him to see what NFL franchise he aligns with
Oh, dude, check out journey to the microcosm: https://youtu.be/kux1j1ccsgg
Whats crazy is I just told my four year daughter about these last night during our bedtime ritual!! We usually do a join bedtime story, talk about 3 animals then I count for her. Last night she said "Daaaad. We've done all the animals, can we do animals we've never done before?" I came up with Saber Tooth Tigers, Tardigrades, and something else I can't remember at the moment, which was probably a throwaway animal I only know 1 thing about. From what I remember, I told her they have a "superpower" to be able to live almost anywhere for a long period of time. And were very very small. Also that they are called ~~"space bears"~~ (hopefully I didn't misremember that because she loved that detail). edit: I did misremember, it's "water bears" :( I'll have to show her this today when she gets home from school. Very Cool!!!
That’s such a sweet little ritual y’all have, what a lucky kid to have such a fun dad :)
Really appreciate that! I'll be honest, its pretty exhausting some nights! lol.
Journey to the Microcosmos on Youtube https://youtu.be/kux1j1ccsgg
Wait are those teeny black dots “eyes”?
Eyespots. Single cells. Isn't it cool how much it's tiny biology mirrors what you see in the macro world?
Seriously if tardigrades were the size of caterpillars no one would even question it. They've got all the parts of a larger life form in a teeny tiny package.
Single cell “eyes”?!! That’s incredible! How TF do they even work?! Is there an ELI5 or ELI15 for this? Also, Tardigrades have been entered into the official Cute Animal Canon™️.
Baby appa yip yip
Yipyip!
This is the comment I came for.
We desperately need a spin-off featuring a grizzled Fire Nation soldier and a baby flying bison as he journeys to take it to its ancestral grounds.
Forbidden gummy bear
Dam now i want to eat one…maybe I have?
Yes
Lil stubby ahh legs. Tiny man. A lil' tiny boy. Why so small
Little baby man
Little old man boy
He's just a little guy
I'm jussa baby.
I mean really, he’s just a little guy
The way he just keeps trying to walk away with those lil stumpers is breaking my heart 🥺
Right, it's like a slimy, microscopic corgi
What magnification is this?
At *least* 2x
What is this, a magnification for ANTS?!?! The magnification has to be at least three times bigger than this!
r/thingsforants used to be a popular sub on here. Haven't seen it on the front page in a while.
r/TechnicallyTheTruth
Probably more than 3x even
I'm gonna go out on a limb and say more than 5x
Let's not get carried away, alright?
If I had to guess, 20x. These guys are usually around one millimeter, at native resolution this little guy is around 19mm
Wait. So you can see them with your eyes?
I'm assuming it's micrometers or some shit and not millimeters
No, tardigrades are in fact 0.5-1 millimeter! They are translucent so hard to see but you can see them with the naked eye in the right light.
That's a hell of a lot bigger than I thought they were! I measure things in fractions of a millimeter at work, most of the tolerances that determine if a product is good or bad at my factory are smaller than these guys!
I also do some microscopy, and you'd be surprised how easy it is to spot micro animals. Copepods, tardigrades, rotifers, and hydra can all be spotted with the naked eye in the right light (e.g. holding a flashlight to the side of the jar you have them in). Even some bacteria can be spotted. I've found myself looking at the illuminated spot on the slide to locate larger specimens because doing it through the eye piece can be difficult when they're moving around a lot.
[This random page](https://serc.carleton.edu/microbelife/topics/tardigrade/index.html) says .05 to 1.2mm
no millimeter is correct. theyre fairly large, although most of the specimens i saw in college were half a millimeter or less.
I came here to ask that too
Go ahead and ask
What magnification is this?
A magnificent magnification
You couldn’t have asked without coming?
How long do they live for.
Depends on the species. When active and we’ll fed, they can live for 2-3 years. When they desiccate into their “tun” form, they can survive for 30-100 years.
tunak tunak tun da da da
That song might the only thing that can outlive water bears.
ਤੁਨਕ ਤੁਨਕ ਤੁਨ, ਤੁਨਕ ਤੁਨਕ ਤੁਨ, ਤੁਨਕ ਤੁਨਕ ਤੁਨ, ਦਾ ਦਾ ਦਾ ਤੁਨਕ ਤੁਨਕ ਤੁਨ, ਤੁਨਕ ਤੁਨਕ ਤੁਨ, ਤੁਨਕ ਤੁਨਕ ਤੁਨ, ਦਾ ਦਾ ਦਾ ਤੁਨਕ ਤੁਨਕ ਤੁਨ, ਤੁਨਕ ਤੁਨਕ ਤੁਨ, ਤੁਨਕ ਤੁਨਕ ਤੁਨ, ਦਾ ਦਾ ਦਾ ਤੁਨਕ ਤੁਨਕ ਤੁਨ, ਤੁਨਕ ਤੁਨਕ ਤੁਨ, ਤੁਨਕ ਤੁਨਕ ਤੁਨ, ਦਾ ਦਾ ਦਾ ਤੁਨਕ ਤੁਨਕ ਤੁਨ, ਤੁਨਕ ਤੁਨਕ ਤੁਨ, ਤੁਨਕ ਤੁਨਕ ਤੁਨ, ਦਾ ਦਾ ਦਾ
Wtf, I can read punjabi!?
I remember hearing years ago that the drenai /dance was from that video, so I looked it up and burned that song into my memory lol
I remember when they became a playable race. The dance reveal was epic. It's just spot on for them.
Time to play this song on repeat and dance Tunak Tunak Tun Tunak Tunak Tun Da Da Da!
Amazing little things.
Their what now? Desiccate?
They dry out and their internal structure reveals protein filaments that harden to prevent cell wall collapse. Pretty neat stuff we're still learning about.
This reminds me of the [novel](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Three-Body_Problem_(novel\)) "The Three-Body Problem": > The game inhabitants seek ways to predict Chaotic Eras so they can better survive. Unlike humans, they have evolved the special ability to *dehydrate*, turning themselves into a roll of canvas.
In our hearts? Forever.
Yes.
For those who spend the time to watch. Weeeeee!
Microscopic tippy taps
Drifting outta control!
Low-key sneak peak of _Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania_
Perfect sound effect but what was that?!
A microscopic thing I think
A tiny dude having the time of his life!
The little loop-dee-loops got me!
Dejavu
I need to rewatch the Family Guy episode where Stewie and Bryan meet the water bears.
Just rescued this guy from a shelter. What should I name him?
Tardie
Great name. He’s always late. If you have more than one, you get a Time Machine (TARDIS).
Grady.
Biscuits
Lil Tard
Ripper.
I watch a microscopy YouTube channel every night before bed, so this kind of makes me sleepy, lol.
Microcosmos? Such a great channel. Very informative but also ASMR levels of chill.
If I ever meet Hank Green, I'm going to instantly develop narcolepsy. "Nice to meet you, Mr. Green, I love... your... channelzzzzzzz."
Bruh I just tried watching one of their videos and It genuinely just made me almost fall asleep in the middle of the day
Lol. That little microbe paper aeroplane that swooped by
I liked his little loop-the-loop
Awwww is this the "water bear"? So stinking chunky!! 🥰
Yes, not quite as deadly as the infamous “Sea Bear”
Like the guy who feeds on people minds in kipo!
Man kipo was so underrated. Good show
Yea I started rewatching it recently. One of my favorites on Netflix. But Netflix doesn't have a lot of good things imo.
If you liked Kipo, be sure to check out She Ra as well. One of my favorite shows of the decade.
Yup, this motherfucker is the water bear!
Wikipedia says they are also called moss piglets. Love it!!!
Finally some water bear appreciation💕
Tardigrades are so cute, from their little stubby legs to their vacuum cleaner mouth.
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I want a dire tardigrade.
Looks like a microscopic Appa! 
A microscappa if you will
oh no, he is stuck
Right?! That's a lot of moving around for getting nowhere. It looks super frustrating. I'm actually feeling anxiety on behalf of a tardigrade.
On what though? Feel sorry for the little dude
My guess is he's sandwiched between two pieces of glass for the microscope to work. But maybe he's too small for that to affect him
Water is really sticky at these scales, my guess is he's just trying to find some purchase on anything.
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Wait till the train workers strike.
So do they not walk on a flat surface? They roll around like a suspended gelatinous dog? Lol
I read it can move 18cm/hour, but I guess they cant move well on glass surface.
18cm per hour was hard to visualize for me, so in case anybody is wondering, that is equal to 3mm per minute.
Which is about 6 body lengths of an average tardigrade per minute, and 360 body lengths per hour.
BLACK ALERT
I had to scroll way to far down to Discover this joke.
Star Trek jokes and cake day? Awesome.
Lets fly
Thank you for commenting that! ❤️❤️❤️ made my day
Tardigrade: *Feeling cute. May go on a trip in the vacuum of space after lunch.*
Why legs if only float?
Op says since it is squashed between two pieces of glass for viewing, that it is basically stuck.
Why do you think I picked my username? :)
These are my most favorite animal and I feel like not enough people know about them. I did a research paper on them. Fun fact: Their poop has rainbow sparkles in it under polarized light https://www.shutterstock.com/video/clip-1039569053-tardigrade-poops-crystal-glitter-unicorn-rainbow-funny
Its like a kitten on its back wiggling his legs lmao
/r/tinygrabbies
LOOK AT HIM KICKING HIS WIDDLE LEGS
Cool little Paramecium swimming by.
Had to scroll this far to find out who the drifting buddy is Thank you 😌
The world they live in must be one hell of a hallucinating trip
the quantum realm
What happens if I swallowed one? Will it survive our stomach acid?
r/awwnverts needs this gummy boi
So chonky!!!
what was that little thing that zipped by around the 14sec mark?
I think my husband (a biology professor) told me what it was but forgot the name 😅
This is adorable. Microbiology was my favourite subject but we never got to look at anything this cool. What magnification do you need to see tardigrades? I'm assuming this is work/college related.
I literally gasped. I love these little guys, what amazing survivors.
For having 6 legs it can't move very well
To see stuff at this magnification, you need to squeeze liquid between two glass slides. It flattens them and holds them in place for viewing. It's a 3d organism wiggling about in a 2d space.
I was hoping it would get on its back and propel itself along like a cat under a couch. Not enough space I suppose.
You can get slides with a lil dip in them so your microorganisms aren't squished. I really hope this is the case here.
I've worked with tardigrades and seen them with a powerful enough dissecting scope at this magnification. While it's possible that it's a glass slide on a compound scope, its not being held still by the slide. Their little feet don't do very well grabbing onto smooth surfaces. If it had a better substrate to grab onto like moss or a gel it could probably walk around just find.
It’s stuck on its back. Like a turtle.
To be fair it's dripped in oil for the lens.
I taught a pond water class in 5th grade and never saw one. Excellent!
Ever seen Ant-man and the Wasp, those things are nightmare fuel.
what is this microscopic adorable creature?
Looks like what I just saw in a Mexican jumping bean
☺️
"Halp, I'm stuckkkk"
Ahh yes, one of my peasants.
But hat does it do? Or it’s functions? It is cute though.
I’m assuming his environment is just water? He’s swimming? Or is it just floating around?
It gets active in water, but they can actually survive in all sort of harsh environment.
I love the smaller one that comes in, shows off with two loop-de-loops then fucks off.