Lichens can survive almost anything, and some might survive Mars (arstechnica.com)

submitted 1 week ago by fossilesque@mander.xyz to c/biodiversity@mander.xyz

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[-] iAvicenna@lemmy.world 2 points 6 days ago

duh of course they can, haven't you read the Mars triology

[-] Anahkiasen 1 points 6 days ago

Wasn't lichen the first fungi to be able to thrive on earth? would t surprise me it can thrive anywhere that shit is resilient as fuck.

I still think fungi just came from outer space anyway. Their immediate adaptation and diversity explosion and the way they've woven into every layer of nature in symbiose like they came with advanced adaptation tools in hand and now they're eating our radiation and plastic. That kingdom is too smart and advanced to me to just have popped one day at the right time.

I'm sure science doesn't support it but I like to think that just arrived on earth one day and went at it. So would make sense to point lichen at the next planet if we want to try too but not sure you can stop it ever after :p

this post was submitted on 21 Apr 2025

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Biodiversity

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Biodiversity is a term used to describe the enormous variety of life on Earth. It can be used more specifically to refer to all of the species in one region or ecosystem. Biodiversity refers to every living thing, including plants, bacteria, animals, and humans. Scientists have estimated that there are around 8.7 million species of plants and animals in existence. However, only around 1.2 million species have been identified and described so far, most of which are insects. This means that millions of other organisms remain a complete mystery.

Over generations, all of the species that are currently alive today have evolved unique traits that make them distinct from other species. These differences are what scientists use to tell one species from another. Organisms that have evolved to be so different from one another that they can no longer reproduce with each other are considered different species. All organisms that can reproduce with each other fall into one species. Read more...

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