Tardigrades may be the toughest animals on Earth! They are microscopic animals that can survive extreme conditions. Scientists have put them in deep freezes more than 450°F below zero. They’ve even sent them into space, where they were exposed to high levels of radiation. But afterward, the tardigrades were just fine.
They may even live in your backyard. You just need a clump of moss and a microscope to look for them. If you don’t have one yourself, maybe you could use one at your school or at a nature center. A microscope that magnifies 15 to 30 times is strong enough to show tardigrades.
Here’s how to collect, view, and observe these nearly indestructible creatures.
Time: 30 minutes to collect, overnight soak, then 15-30 minutes to observe
Difficulty Level: Medium (requires a microscope)
Materials
- A small clump of moss (from the ground, a tree, a rock, or a wall)
- Paper bag or envelope (for transport)
- Small cup or container
- Distilled or spring water
- Eyedropper or pipette
- Microscope (15x-30x magnification is enough)
- Microscope slide (if using a standard microscope)
What to Do
- Find some moss. Go outside and look for moss growing on rocks, tree trunks, sidewalk edges, or shady patches of ground. Pull up a small clump, and put it in a paper bag or envelope. Try to get a piece with as little dirt on it as possible.
- Soak the moss. At home, put the moss face-down into the container. Add some water to cover it and let it soak overnight. Let it soak overnight.
- Squeeze out the water. The next day, take the moss out of the container and squeeze it so that the water goes into the container.
- Prepare a slide. Use the eyedropper to suck up some water. Squirt it onto a slide, then look at it under the microscope.
- Look through the microscope. Start at low magnification (15x-30x). Scan the water drop slowly.
- Spot the tardigrade. You may see a number of things moving around, since tardigrades aren’t the only tiny creatures that live in moss! But soon you may spot a tardigrade. It will look barrel-shaped and move slowly, and you might be able to see its legs as it crawls along. Once you find one tardigrade, you may start recognizing others. Happy hunting!
