how can 'indestructible' tardigrades[water bears] be eaten?

ARAVIND113122

tardigrades[water bears] can resist pressures upto 6000 atm,can resist unbelievably high radiation levels,have even survived in space.how is it then,that it is eaten by nematodes,amoeba and other tardigrades?? to be precise,how can they be killed??-the digestive juices of other animals should have no effect on them,teeth,claws on any other physical weapon cannot harm them[an animal that can resist 6000 atm should be able to resist any physical damage].
are all these abilities activated only when tardigrades are in 'suspended animation'.if yes,why don't they go into suspended animation when they face a predator,or are in the predators body?

mishrashubham

Why? Enzymes can be wonderful little things. Do you have a reference for this?


I'd like to take a look at this article but unfortunately I don't have access. may be someone who does might comment.
http://journals.cambridge.org/action...line&aid=83425

Pythagorean

The author says that shelf life might be closer to 10 yrs than 100 yrs. The article is a review, not original research. So if you can see its references, you might find original research there about decade-length lifetimes. A lot of them are Italian though:

Bertolani, R. (1982). Tardigradi (Tardigrada). Guide per il riconoscimento
delle specie animali delle acque interne italiane.
Quaderni CNR, Roma, AQ/1/168, 15.

mishrashubham

Unfortunately no. And I find this really annoying. Springer, elsevier, francis etc don't let me read an article without subscription. I'm fine with this, but they won't even let me see the references.

Pythagorean

Elsevier (insert ranting and expletives on scientific publishing here).