Nearly impossible to kill already the water bear, or tardigrade, is able to to survive 10x the amount of radiation a human can, years without food or water, the vacuum of space, below freezing and above boiling temperatures, and among other things, can now boast that it contains 17.5% of its DNA from other species. Most organisms have about 1% of foreign DNA in their genome, but with the water bear its inexplicable ability to assimilate other organisms' genes into its own might explain its uncanny ability to survive in conditions so harsh nearly anything else would die instantly in.
The theory behind how this is accomplished has to do with the water bear's ability to survive so well in the first place. When water bear is facing extreme conditions, it goes into a hibernation of sorts by dehydrating its body. During this process, its DNA breaks up into to smaller pieces. Then when conditions are favorable for the water bear, it absorbs surrounding water, and sometimes this water contains fragments of DNA from dead cells, is absorbed by the porous water bear and then joined with the DNA fragments in the water bears cells.
The water bear has always been a favorite of mine, but with their nye-invincibility and ability to absorb DNA fragments from organisms such as fungi, archaea, and even other animals, it is my belief (a belief backed up by utterly no facts) that they are preparing for an assault on the upper world. If only they weren't .02 inches long.
Comparatively, the water bears have an immense amount more of foreign DNA than other organisms. I am sure this is what helps them to survive in such harsh conditions. Considering they can survive in freezing and boiling temperatures, it seems that maybe they have genetic material from extremophiles, organisms that thrive in extreme environments. Also, its ability to absorb foreign DNA and insert it into its genome is another similarity to bacteria. If this ability could be isolated genetically, it could be very beneficial in the medical and scientific fields.
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