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Searching for the first animalCristina Diaz
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When I encounter a sponge, I'm just in awe. They're just so different you cannot stop yourself from asking, "What are you? What do you do? What do you eat?" -- Cristina Diaz

Dr. Diaz exploring sponges
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Video: Diaz shows how sponges pump water to feed
Dr. Cristina Diaz from the University of California, Santa Cruz, has made studying and classifying sponges her life's work. Her research takes her to the waters of Sulawesi in Northern Indonesia, one of the most biologically rich environments on Earth. There, she searches for members of the group that started it all--the first animal group of Earth.

Diaz's explorations reveal sponges as a surprisingly colorful and diverse group of animals. Once considered plants, sponges showcase special traits of "animalness" -- like sporting multiple specialized cells that work together and communicate with each other in a uniquely animal way.

In her work off Sulawesi, Diaz brings to light the prodigious power of these seemingly quiet animals. Using luminous non-toxic dye, she demonstrates that simple sponges function as fantastically active pumps.


Map
Sulawesi, Indonesia
 
 
 

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Dr. Cristina Diaz Biography and Career Q & A
 
 

 

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