Author: Lesheng

A kind of 'dragon'-like creature has been discovered in the European region

Since ancient times, we Chinese have called ourselves 'descendants of the dragon' and used the dragon as our national totem. However, we all know that the dragon is only a mythical creature that appears in our Chinese myths. It does not exist in the real world. However, animal researchers have discovered a creature that looks very similar to 'dragon' in some European caves, and they named it 'newt'. The 'newt' in Croatia and other European countries is called 'merfolk'.

The newt is the largest cave-dwelling animal, and it has lived in caves its entire life. From appearance, it really resembles the 'dragon' in our Chinese myths. The body length of the newt is about 20-30 cm, and its skin color is somewhat white or pink. Seeing these cute, rosy-colored creatures, Europeans used to trade them as pets. Therefore, the newt was once on the verge of extinction. However, the current number is very few. But since 1982, Slovenia announced the prohibition of newt trading, and human threat to them has been reduced a lot.

7 years without eating and not moving, just for convenience, 12 years to mate once

When we talk about the special features of newts, we often think of 'laziness'. Since newts were discovered by humans, they have always been the observation objects of researchers. According to a research paper published in the 'Journal of Zoology', researchers found that when observing wild newts, they discovered that they can survive for 7 years without eating, but all researchers said they were unbelievable.

Although in 2011, scientists discovered that newts are particularly good at starving, no one expected that newts could be so lazy. And according to the latest findings, the mating number of newts in their lifetime is very little, about 12.5 years once. In other words, if newts are not for maintaining body function and offspring, they might remain in a static state for a lifetime.

Such a lazy creature might be the most powerful in the world, perhaps only the newt. Compared to the laziness of other animals, perhaps the newt's 'laziness' is forced by the harsh environment. According to the information, newts only live in caves in some European mountain ranges, and in the caves, food is very scarce. Most of the nutrients come from organic matter washed in by rain or bat droppings. Therefore, in order to survive, you must enter 'energy-saving' mode.

Therefore, it is better to say that the newt is the representative of laziness, rather than saying that it is laziness. It is rather that it is triggered by the harsh environment. But if the newt could choose, I believe the newt would not want to live such a life.

What is the reason for the long life of newts?

Newts are not only good at starving, but also have a long lifespan. Researchers estimated that the lifespan of newts might be 100 years. Although this data has not been confirmed, the long lifespan of newts has been recognized by most people. Scientists are also curious about the reasons for their long lifespan.

After observing newts, researchers came to a conclusion, perhaps because newts have a slow metabolism, so there are fewer free radicals in the body. In this case, the newt's organs can reduce damage, thereby extending its lifespan. This discovery may be used by humans, if humans' metabolism slows down and becomes less, it may also reduce free radicals and extend survival time.

But this way may not be suitable for humans, or even for mammals, because we are warm-blooded animals, and we need to consume a lot of energy every day. If we reduce the intake of food, this warm-blooded function will be damaged, we will feel cold, and as humans with high intelligence, the energy required for brain function cannot be ignored. Therefore, the long life of newts is a way we cannot learn.

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