The Glass Sponge: The 15,000-Year-Old Animal

Imagine an animal that was alive when mammoths still roamed the Earth, an organism that has witnessed millennia unfold from the depths of the ocean. We're talking about the Glass Sponge, quite possibly the oldest living animal on our planet. These incredible deep-sea creatures, often mistaken for rocks, can have lifespans estimated at over 10,000 years, with some scientists suggesting they could potentially live up to a mind-boggling 15,000 years! One particular specimen found in the East China Sea had a skeleton suggesting it lived for 11,000 years, meaning it was alive during the last Ice Age. These ancient beings attach themselves to hard surfaces on the seabed and patiently filter seawater for bacteria and plankton. Their intricate, silica-based skeletal structures, which give them their glassy appearance, also provide vital habitat for other small marine creatures. The sheer longevity of the Glass Sponge challenges our very understanding of aging and survival, a silent sentinel in the abyss that has persisted through vast geological timescales. What secrets of life do these ancient animals hold? Subscribe for more journeys into the extraordinary!
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