Scientist discover new species of worm that has three different sexes

Image: CNN

Image: CNN

(CNN)—- There’s a new species of worm, and this one has three different sexes, can survive 500 times the dose of arsenic it would take to kill a human and keeps its young in a pouch, not unlike a kangaroo.

Researchers think humans might have something to learn from the worm’s resilience.

Caltech researchers discovered eight species of worms that live in the arsenic-rich Mono Lake in California. The team published its findings Thursday in the journal Current Biology.

Mono Lake is three times saltier than the Pacific Ocean — so salty, researchers said, that only two other species were ever known to live in it: brine shrimp and diving flies.

That’s before they found the worms.

Categories: National News