根据图片文章生成一个科普视频---**Header/Category:**
ENVIRONMENT (accompanied by a globe icon)
**Main Title:**
ANCIENT ANIMAL SURVIVAL SECRETS
**Subtitle/Blurb:**
Discover the remarkable resilience of Earth's oldest and hardiest animals, overcoming mass extinctions and conquering the planet's ever-changing climate
**Author:**
WORDS AILSA HARVEY
**Article Content:**
**Paragraph 1 (Left Column):**
As animals that lived long before us and dominated Earth between 245 and 66 million years ago, we are fascinated by the dinosaurs. Yet there are others alive today that lived alongside them, came before them and have remained relatively unchanged for hundreds of millions of years. Some have endured five mass extinction events and survived, while the dinosaurs were doomed to perish.
**Paragraph 2 (Left Column):**
The key to a creature’s success over the course of geological eras varies, though there are some general traits that make its long-term survival more likely. Firstly, they need to be adaptable and flexible. If a sudden mass-extinction event occurs and the conditions of its environment change suddenly, the speed at which an animal can adapt to these new – and often more hostile – conditions determines whether they survive or are wiped out.
**Paragraph 3 (Left Column):**
The next factor to consider is reproductive capability. Instead of being the toughest and longest living animals, some take a strength-in-numbers approach. Fast reproduction means that even if an animal lives a short life, it can reproduce and help maintain the population of its species within this short time. The less time there is between birth and reproduction in an animal’s life cycle, the better the chances of producing offspring.
**"Did you know?" Box:**
Did you know?
Mayflies have the shortest life span of any animal (accompanied by a gear/cog icon)
**Paragraph 1 (Right Column):**
Complexity isn’t always the best approach. Some of the longest lasting inhabitants of Earth are those with a simple biological make-up that can adapt more easily to a changing environment and don’t need so much energy to sustain complex functions. This might mean that the animal is brainless, as brains demand huge amounts of a body’s total energy for complex functions. The human brain, for example, uses up 20 per cent of your energy intake. So while humans may be considered one of the most advanced species, we have only existed for 200,000 years. In the grand scheme of things, we’re a new life form and have not yet had a test of survival in the same way much older species have.
**Paragraph 2 (Right Column):**
Our big brains will undoubtedly give us an edge, like in modern medicine, where we often use specialised cells from other species that have stood the test of time to gain a biological advantage against threats to our own survival. For example, armoured arthropods called horseshoe crabs have naturally thrived for over 400 million years. Their blood contains immune cells that surround harmful bacteria and isolate them, preventing the bacteria from making the creature sick. Humans now use these cells from the blood of horseshoe crabs to test vaccinations for contamination, helping ensure the survival of humans.
**Image Description:**
* **Type:** Photograph.
* **Main Elements:** The image is a close-up photograph of a light-colored, layered, and textured organic structure, possibly a type of marine organism such as coral or a fungus. It exhibits multiple overlapping, fan-like or wave-like folds with a rough surface texture, interspersed with irregular patches of darker brown or orange coloration. The background is dark and out of focus, suggesting an underwater or dimly lit environment. No specific points, lines, or labels are present within the photograph itself.
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Throughout Earth's history, some remarkable creatures have survived for hundreds of millions of years, far outlasting the mighty dinosaurs. While dinosaurs dominated Earth between 245 and 66 million years ago, other animals lived alongside them, came before them, and remain relatively unchanged today. These ancient survivors have endured five mass extinction events that wiped out countless species, including the dinosaurs themselves. What secrets do these resilient creatures hold?
Adaptability and flexibility are crucial for long-term survival. When sudden environmental changes occur, such as climate shifts or mass extinction events, the speed at which an animal can adapt determines its fate. Flexible species can modify their behavior, physiology, or habitat preferences to cope with new conditions. In contrast, rigid species that cannot adapt quickly enough are often wiped out. This principle explains why some creatures have survived multiple extinction events while others, including the dinosaurs, could not overcome rapid environmental changes.
Reproductive capability is another crucial factor for long-term survival. Some species take a strength-in-numbers approach rather than focusing on individual longevity. Fast reproduction means that even if animals live short lives, they can reproduce quickly and maintain their population. The shorter the time between birth and reproduction, the better the chances of producing offspring before extinction events occur. Mayflies, for example, have the shortest lifespan of any animal but reproduce so rapidly that their species persists. This strategy often proves more effective than having fewer, longer-lived individuals.
Complexity isn't always the best approach for long-term survival. Some of Earth's longest-lasting inhabitants have simple biological structures that adapt more easily to changing environments and require less energy to sustain. Complex organisms, especially those with large brains, demand enormous amounts of energy. The human brain, for example, uses 20 percent of our total energy intake. While humans may be considered advanced, we've only existed for 200,000 years. In the grand scheme of geological time, we're newcomers and haven't yet faced the same survival tests as much older, simpler species like jellyfish, which have thrived for over 500 million years.
Horseshoe crabs perfectly demonstrate all three survival principles we've discussed. These remarkable creatures have thrived for over 400 million years through their adaptability, effective reproduction, and simple yet robust biological design. Their blood contains specialized immune cells that surround and isolate harmful bacteria, preventing infection. This ancient defense mechanism is so effective that humans now use these cells to test vaccines for contamination, ensuring our own survival. The horseshoe crab's success story shows how simple, adaptable organisms with effective reproductive strategies can not only survive multiple mass extinctions but also contribute to the survival of other species, including our own.