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Photo of rare Indonesian coelacanth mongabay.com May 22, 2007
Yustinus Lahama, an Indonesian fisherman, and his son caught the "living fossil" in the sea off North Sulawesi province. The fish lived for 17 hours before expiring—an unusually long time for the deep-water species to survive at surface level. The coelacanth measured 1.31 meters (four feet) long and weighted 51 kilograms (112 pounds), according to reports. The coelacanth was believed extinct since the age of the dinosaurs until an individual was captured off the coast of Southern African in 1938. Since then the fish has been found along the south-east African and in Indonesia, The species is notable for its heavy body armor and prehistoric appearance. Generally found at depths exceeding 300 feet (90 m), coelacanths occasionally show up in fish markets in Africa and Indonesia, usually captured as by-catch by fishermen seeking deepwater species. The fish are believed to be sexually mature at 20 years and live to 80-100 years old.
This report used information from the Associated Press and Reuters. Related articles Unusual prehistoric shark beast captured in Japan. A rare frilled shark was captured live by fishermen off the coast of Japan. The toothy eel-like creature was taken to Awashima Marine Park in Shizuoka where it later died according to Reuters. Photos of world's largest squid. Fishermen in New Zealand may have captured the largest Colossal squid ever recorded. It may be the first time a Colossal squid has been seen alive. The beast, weighing 450 kilograms (990 pounds), was eating a Patagonian toothfish (Chilean sea bass) hooked by fishermen when it was captured in the deep, frigid waters in the Ross Sea near Antarctica. The squid was reported to be 10 meters (33 feet) in length and took more than two hours to land. Slurp gun used to capture hermaphrodite from hydrothermal vent. Researchers used an "Alvin Slurp Gun" to capture a hagfish from a deep sea hydrothermal vent. It is the first time that a member of the jawless fishes (agnathans) have been captured from a hydrothermal vent site. The results are published in the current edition of the journal Biology Bulletin. Comments? News options Liquid error: Template not found languages/english/includes/x/_56.liquid
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