5 Animals that can Survive Extreme Cold and Hot Environments

No matter where you go on earth, there’s usually some sort of animal that lives there, even in places with extreme weather conditions like desserts and ice covered plains. These animals stand through the test of nature as they survive the elements and live to see another season.

Here are 5 of the most weather-hardy animals on earth.

Wood Frogs

In the Alaskan cold, the wood frogs are known to stay as cold as microwave dinners for months and thaw themselves during warmer seasons. Researchers at University of Alaska Fairbanks found that these frogs can stay alive while frozen in temperatures of6°F or -14.6°C and even lower. These one of a kind frogs are the only ones that shows this kind of freeze tolerance. They bodies survive the extreme cold and freezing by packing glucose into their cells.

Red Flat Bark Beetle

This beetle is widely spreader all over North America, ranging from North Carolina up to the Arctic Circle. Because they live in very cold temperatures, these beetles have become more tolerant and developed an ability to avoid becoming frozen in the extreme cold. Antifreeze proteins are found in their bodies to stop them from freezing. Individuals are able to survive in temperature as cold as -72°F or -58°C. What’s even more remarkable is that their larvae are able to stand colder temperatures than adult.

Pompeii Worm

Where these worms live, you can leave an egg and it’ll be hard-boiled in a few minutes. These worms are seen near hydrothermal vents under water. They’re the most heat tolerant multi-celled organism, able to stand temperatures above boiling point. Researchers believe that these worms are able to stand these temperatures because of a mysterious bacterium that covers them. The bacterium insulates the worms and protects them from the temperatures of the seafloor.

Sahara Desert Ant

As one of the hottest and driest places on earth, you’d think that nothing can ever live in the Sahara Desert. However, the Sahara Desert ant is one tough dweller as it forages through the sand while its body temperature reaches above 122°F or 50°C. The ant’s long legs help lifts its body off the desert sand to keep it a little cooler. They spend a majority of their time scavenging dead insects and other ants that died in the heat.

Tardigrade or Water Bear

Also known as moss piglet, they are the kings of surviving extreme temperatures. These tiny invertebrate are able to survive hundreds of degrease below freezing point and hundreds of degrees above boiling point. They stay in damp moss and lichens around hot springs and under solid ice. Scientists have even exposed these organisms to the cosmic rays and vacuum of space and they still survived.