What animal lives the shortest life?
Adult mayflies are famous for the shortest lives, with some species living only a few minutes to a day after becoming adults. Their full life cycle, though, can last a year or more underwater.
Mayflies spend most of their lives as underwater nymphs, which can live for months or even a couple of years. When they finally become flying adults, they have no working mouthparts and cannot eat. Their only job is to mate and lay eggs. The female of one species, Dolania americana, lives less than five minutes as an adult.
Among other animals, some tiny aquatic creatures called gastrotrichs live only about three days. Many insects, such as houseflies, live about a month. Among vertebrates, the pygmy goby, a small reef fish, lives for only about eight weeks.
Short lives, big impact
Mayflies often emerge in huge swarms, sometimes so large that they show up on weather radar. They are an important food source for fish and birds. Because they need clean water, scientists use mayfly populations as a sign of river health.
Did You Know?
The longest-living animals include the ocean quahog clam, one of which was about 507 years old, and the Greenland shark, which can live for centuries.