Super Natural by Alex Riley review – the creatures that can survive anywhere

From moss piglets to radioactive horses – a survey of animals’ extraordinary adaptations to extreme environmentsAtop the gloop that swirls on subterranean pools in Romania’s Movile cave, a host of mostly translucent, unseeing creatures scrabbles around. These singular beasties – centipedes, spiders, scorpions, leeches, snails and woodlice – derive their daily nutrients from slimy mats of sulphur-loving bacteria that thrive in the oxygen-poor atmosphere.This unique ecosystem was isolated for more than 5m years until 1986, when drilling for a potential power plant pierced the cave’s walls. As the science writer Alex Riley reports in Super Natural, 37 out of the 52 invertebrate species living in the 240-metre-long space – which sits 21 metres below the surface near the Black Sea coast – exist nowhere else on Earth. Continue reading...

Comments

Culture

Wayne Lewis death: Atlantic Starr singer dies, aged 68

Independent

Comments

Similar News

Super Trouper meets supercomputer: AI helping Abba star to write musical

Three Friends review – charm aplenty in super-tasteful comedy that couldn’t be more French

TV tonight: Rylan stars in a super fun Eurovision/Doctor Who mashup

Culture

Wayne Lewis death: Atlantic Starr singer dies, aged 68

Con Mum true story – how chef Graham Hornigold was scammed by dying ‘mother’

Robbie in London was over the top, bizarre yet also sincere – only he can do that

Sam Fender at the London Stadium: Geordie Springsteen bosses biggest eve gig

Stephen King puts the Trump and Musk feud into perspective with one scathing question

‘Doctor Who’s finale infuriated fans – but the next series will fix everything’

Alan Yentob’s final interview set to air on BBC

Sarah Jessica Parker makes candid comment about awkward And Just Like That scene: ‘None of this is my idea’

Amazon cancels show from Gilmore Girls creator after just one season

I haven’t fallen over on stage yet but if I do I’ll joke about it, says Justin Currie

'My grandmother grew up brushing her teeth with radioactive toothpaste'

Clarkson Farm fans delighted after star shares ‘great’ health news

'They have perfect dark skin': The African nation home to fashion's favourite models

Cosey Fanni Tutti's journey through art, porn and music

A baklava crawl in the Turkish city that's obsessed with the pastry

4 takeaways from Erin Patterson's testimony at her toxic mushroom triple murder trial

'Doctor Who' is about possibility. Ncuti Gatwa's role embodied that

00s pop icons surprise shoppers with free car park gig

I thought Robbie Williams was overhyped but he can still kick it

Iran’s Daughters of the Sea

Warped Ways of Seeing “P.O.V.”

Why Do Doctors Write?

Ryan Coogler confirms Denzel Washington will star in Black Panther 3

Bake Off legend claims she’s been dropped by the BBC after 10 years on TV

WorldPride caps off its first D.C. celebration with a weekend parade

Book Review: ‘John Hancock,’ by Willard Sterne Randall

The Director of ‘Mission Impossible: Final Reckoning’ Unpacks Key Franchise Moments

What to Expect at the 2025 Tony Awards: ‘Hamilton,’ Robots and More

Thrilling Fantasy Books That Reimagine Myths and Folklore

Why Beyoncé and BET Keep Calling Jesse Collins

Misty Copeland Changed Ballet. Now She’s Ready to Move On.

Ferris Bueller’s Vest Hits the Auction Block. ‘Anyone, Anyone?’

‘Devastated’ Rod Stewart, 80, cancels concerts weeks before Glastonbury due to sickness

‘I co-wrote Chappell Roan’s famously explicit lyric in my parents’ basement’

Mads Mikkelsen makes surprise return as iconic James Bond villain

Jeremy Clarkson bans customer from his pub over price complaint

Bake Off’s Nadiya Hussain reveals BBC has dropped her cooking show after 10 years

Rod Stewart cancels US gigs ahead of Glastonbury

Jeff Gordon talks learning to race at 5-years-old and teaching his kids to drive

How Stacy Spikes, Co-Founder of MoviePass, Spends His Day at the Theater

Psychological thriller labelled a ‘masterpiece’ free to stream on BBC iPlayer

Rod Stewart ‘devastated’ as he cancels more concerts just weeks before Glastonbury set

Lisa Kudrow shares candid opinion about her Friends character Phoebe

Cheers – of a kind – when Susan Calman went to the Glasgow pub

'Thrilling and exhilarating': Scottish debut album from 1990 still sparkles

The Herald's Unspun Live heads to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe

Angus Robertson urges Edinburgh festivals to expand across the city

New Edinburgh concert arena opening and ticket sales plans revealed

Amazon Prime fans rush to binge ‘best series ever’ that went under the radar

‘A police drama with a twist’: Your favourite underrated TV thrillers

Sir Rod Stewart 'devastated' after cancelling more concerts

The five best classic romance novels, according to Milly Johnson

How the insufferable waiting game ruined the way we watch TV

15 terrible movies directed by great actors, from Jodie Foster’s The Beaver to Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ

Bryce Dallas Howard: ‘I was such a messed up kid – I would walk around the Disney lot reading about euthanasia’

Schwarzenegger: Hey, stop whining, do something on climate change

Electric Spark by Frances Wilson review: Muriel is as intriguing as her novels

Documentary Series Goes Inside Trump’s Bubble

Sir Rod Stewart cancels US concerts amid recovery from flu

A British TV art expert who sold works to a suspected Hezbollah financier is sentenced to prison