Horizontal gene transfer overestimated for Tardigrades. Image credit: Phineas Jones, creative commons license (Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 2.0) Moss piglets, water bears, whatever you like to call them, Tardigrades are some of the most fascinating critters of the animal kingdom. They are well known for their durability and are often referenced for their ability to survive desiccation and the vacuum of space! Tardigrades recently made some interesting headlines such as