Celacanthus, the new Internet star

2001/05/16 Elhuyar Zientzia

• Biologia
• Internet

Celacanthus (Latimeria chalumnae), a unique fish that has not changed for 400 million years, has become an Internet star since the images that are collected on the north-eastern coast of South Africa began to spread.

These images were collected in a colony that was discovered in October in Sodwana Bay. This discovery has aroused a great curiosity about the fact that in 1938 they discovered the first hundred living specimens, which have rarely seen it again. Now, the team of researchers studying this colony offers on a website videos and photographs that collect the life forms and customs of the Zelekantos.

This expectation is not surprising, since the zelekante is a real living fossil. According to the fossils found, 400 million years ago seemed the same as today, although more than 120 species of cello are known missing. In fact, before the discovery of 1938, it was thought that all crematoria species had disappeared 70 million years ago. For this reason, in the South African Republic there appeared that first glitter alive in the twentieth century. It was considered at that time as one of the most important zoological discoveries of the twentieth century.

The biggest check ever seen was 178 cm long and weighed 98 kg. Currently, researchers believe that only 1,000 remain in the world.