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Welcome to the fascinating world of the Sleeping Chironomid, an insect able to survive even to complete desiccation!
The Sleeping Chironomid (Polypedilum vanderplanki) is a small midge living in the semiarid regions of central Africa. During the dry season, which may last for 8 months without any rain, the larvae of the sleeping chironomid are completely desiccated, but they can recover their active form and begin to swim after the first rain of the rainy season. Among insects, the Sleeping Chironomid is the only species known to have developed such extraordinary drought resistance (cryptobiosis phenomenon).
This site presents the ecology of the Sleeping Chironomid, its amazing resistance capacity and the latest research concerning the mechanism of drought resistance.
NEW! | 10-04-05 Updating to Publications page. Shimizu et al. was evaluated as Faculty of 1000 Biology on 31 Mar 2010. http://f1000biology.com/article/id/2730957 |
08-09-25 Updating to "A study of tolerance" and "Application in the furture" pages. |
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08-07-18 Updating to FAQ page. |
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08-07-17 Updating to "GALLERY" page. You can see photos of about space. |
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Updating to "GALLERY" page. You can see photos of laboratory in Japan. | |
08-06-02 Updating for video clip, "Revival and dessication of Sleepin Chironomid". →Click! |
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08-05-20 Updating to "GALLERY" page. You can see Nigerian Photos. |
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08-04-15 |
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