![]() The Smithsonian reports that sponges were some of the world’s first animals – able to survive the low oxygen levels in the ocean at least 700 million years ago.Īs for land animals, the fossil of a millipede recently discovered in Scotland was traced back 425 million years, making it the oldest known land animal discovered by fossil, Reuters reported. World's smallest cow: Meet Rani What was the first animal on earth?Īnother not so clear cut question. It is only a truth until something smaller is discovered. However, Di Girolamo stresses that science is a field that hinges on discovery, so the truth of this question now is not a permanent truth. Right now, the smallest known is a type of frog called "Paedophryne amauensisuensis." The average length of this frog’s body is under 8 mm. If this definition doesn’t meet your fancy, you can shift to the vertebrates category, Di Girolamo explains, meaning animals with backbones. If you don’t mind classifying something so small you need a microscope to see it, then there is a recently discovered group of parasitic jellyfish called Myxozoa, measuring barely 20 micrometers, that account for some of the smallest "animals" on Earth. The traditional definition, Di Girolamo explains, is an organism made of multiple cells. The question is complicated in large part by the ongoing debate in the scientific community over what constitutes an animal. ![]() This is not a question with a simple answer, as Professor of Veterinary Clinical Sciences Nicola Di Girolamo explained in a 2019 article for The Conversation. What is the smallest animal in the world?
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