coelacanth
(pronunciation – ‘seel-uh-kanth’, the first ‘c’, along with the letters ‘o’ and ‘e’, rhymes with the word ‘see’ and the second ‘c’ is said with a ‘k’ sound as in “king” — for the right pronunciation of this word, please click here)
a kind of fish – related to the ‘lungfish’; with different scale formation and fin formation (one rayed, transparent fin and seven fleshy fins); mostly blue but also found in brown; grows to 3-6.5 feet long and weighs 25-80 Kg.; females are larger than males; feeds on cuttlefish, squid, small sharks and other fish; lives for about 60 years (but not yet confirmed)
The coelacanth was thought to have been extinct (=died out completely) very long ago until a live one was caught near South Africa in 1938, and after that there have been some numbers caught here and there around Africa and Asia (the most important find being the one on September 4, 1998, in Indonesia).
It has existed almost unchanged for about 350 million years now. [Some experts believe that the feature of giving live young is a ‘change’ in its life over the years.]
Coelacanths are the missing link between the ancient and the modern fish, and is considered the best example of a ‘living fossil’!
It has a special organ (electro receptor) on its skull with which, the scientists believe, it finds its food (like echolocation system in bats).
Return to “living fossil” in People & Professions.
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