Marianne Denton to Lecture on ‘Water Bears’ on Oct. 27 at WNC
They are smaller than a millimeter, live on fluid and are tough enough to survive radiation and starvation.
Tardigrades, or more commonly water bears, will be the topic of Marianne Denton’s Oct. 27 lecture, “Teeny-Tiny Tardigrades: The Wondrous World of Water Bears,” at Western Nevada College’s Jack C. Davis Observatory in Carson City.
Denton is a full-time aquatic ecologist, part-time student and astrobiology enthusiast who is active in preparing, promoting and/or presenting science-based events in Northern Nevada.
“When I'm not collecting tardigrades for research, I am collecting benthic macroinvertebrates — the little creatures that live in the bottom of streams, lakes and wetlands,” she said.
Water bears are eight-legged minute invertebrates that prefers to live in moist areas such as water and mosses. Some believe they will remain on Earth longer than people.
The free lecture is scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m.
When lectures aren’t scheduled on Saturdays at Jack C. Davis, the observatory is open to the public from sundown to 11 p.m. for Star Parties led by the Western Nevada Astronomical Society.