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Living fossil discovered below Earth’s surface

Microbe may have been in evolutionary stasis for millions of years.

Equipment for subsurface sampling of microbes in Death Valley, California. New research led by Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences has revealed that a group of microbes, Candidatus Desulforudis audaxviator, have been at an evolutionary standstill for millions of years. Credit: Duane Moser, Desert Research Institute