Australian Lungfish
This is probably the oldest living aquarium fish in the world
Methuselah was brought to the museum in San Francisco from Australia in 1938
© Burak Arik / Picture Alliance
In the Bible, Methuselah was the grandfather of Noah and is said to have lived to be 969 years old. While the fish Methuselah isn’t quite as old, biologists believe the San Francisco-based lungfish is about 90 years old and has no living counterparts.
He likes to eat fresh figs, likes to have his stomach rubbed and is probably the oldest living aquarium fish in the world: the lungfish Methusalem. Biologists from the California Academy of Sciences believe it is about 90 years old and has no living members of its own species.
According to an Associated Press report, the four-foot-long, 40-pound fish was brought from Australia to a museum in San Francisco in 1938. It is not known how old he was at the time. The Australian lungfish, a primitive species with lungs and gills, is thought to be the evolutionary link between fish and amphibians.
“Methusalem is the oldest fish by default”
Until a few years ago, the oldest Australian lungfish was at the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago. But the fish named Granddad died in 2017 at the age of 95.
“Methusalem is the oldest fish by default,” the academy’s chief biologist is quoted as saying. Methuselah’s keepers believe the fish is female, although it’s difficult to determine the sex of the species without a risky blood draw. The academy plans to send a tiny sample of their fin to researchers in Australia, who will then try to confirm the sex and find out the exact age of the fish.
Australian lungfish are an endangered species
“She’s a bit picky and only likes figs when they’re fresh and in season. She won’t eat frozen figs,” said an academy spokeswoman, who has two other Australian lungfish, both estimated to be 40 or 50 years old.
The Australian lungfish is now an endangered species and can no longer be exported from Australian waters. Academy biologists say they are unlikely to get a replacement if Methuselah dies. “We’re just giving her the best care we can give her and hoping she thrives,” Jan said.
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Source: AP