World's oldest living creatures found in Scottish field

[Judi Lynn]

World's oldest living creatures found in Scottish field
Two colonies of age-old and endangered tadpole shrimps discovered alive and well near Solway coast
Ian Sample, science correspondent guardian.co.uk
Thursday 29 July 2010 19.55 BST

A field near Gretna in Dumfriesshire might not be an obvious place to find the world's oldest living creatures, but a team of scientists has done just that.

Two colonies of a prehistoric shrimp that evolved when the dinosaurs ruled the Earth have been found alive and well in the Caerlaverock nature reserve on the Solway coast.

The discovery has led experts to think there could be more of the little crustaceans, which are listed as endangered species, elsewhere in the area.

The ancient creatures, known as Triops cancriformis or tadpole shrimps, are thought to have the oldest pedigree of any living animal. Fossil evidence suggests they have hardly changed in the more than 200m years that they have been around.

More:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/jul/29/rare-tadpole-shrimps-found-scotland

[Whoa_Nelly]

1. Now we know! Nessie is a giant shrimp!

Holy Oxymorons, Batman! Run for your life! :yoiks:

[90-percent]

2. Pesky lil things

BP's close by, just pick up a few million gallons of corexit and those pesky critters will never be a Scottish nuisance again!

-90% Jimmy

[DBoon]

3. John McCain, is that you?

nt

[TheCowsCameHome]

4. Must be another residence that he forgot about....

[jberryhill]

5. Ah... So Seamus and Ian haven't finished their round yet

The entire club has played through dozens of times already.

[thereismore]

6. How long before we eat them all. nt

[txlibdem]

7. How old is the world's oldest scampi?

[Kali]

8. we have those here

I also have a "sea monkey" type kids grow kit with triops I haven't ever activated. (Joke b'day gift from family that know me too well)