New species of water bear uses fluorescent ‘shield’ to survive lethal UV radiation | Science | AAAS

New species of water bear uses fluorescent ‘shield’ to survive lethal UV radiation | Science | AAAS

Water bears just levelled up

Tardigrades, also known as water bears, are pretty indestructible: they can survive extreme heat, radiation and even the vacuum of outer space. Now, scientists have discovered a species of water bear that can survive lethal ultraviolet (UV) radiation. Nifty fluorescent pigments in the tardigrades’ skin appear to convert the UV radiation to harmless blue light, protecting them against UV levels that are regularly used to kill hardy viruses and bacteria.

Science | 3 min readReference: Biology Letters paper