It’s heroic, hardy and less than a millimetre long: meet the 2025 invertebrate of the year | Patrick Barkham

Guardian readers around the world voted in the this year’s contest, celebrating our spineless, friendly neighbours. But which creature won?If you didn’t vote in the recent ballot, you missed out. Here was a vote where all 10 candidates were creative and morally upstanding, a vote unsullied by dubious lobbies, dodgy polls or demagogues. And if you’re seeking inspiration from a figure of strength who is also strangely cute then look no further than the winner of 2025: Milnesium t