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Thanks to the skilled manoeuvring of a remote-operated vehicle (ROV) 125 metres below the surface, scientists on a research expedition near Sodwana managed to capture the incredibly rare coelacanth on film.
There are only 33 known individuals in the world, so you can understand the excitement, especially when you consider that the species was thought to be extinct until they were discovered near East London in December 1938.
Reporting below from News24:
Dr Kerry Sink of the South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI) was able to identify the fish spotted this week as Eric, an individual first identified in 2009 and last seen in 2013.
Sink said Eric was fitted with a satellite tag in 2013 that allowed them to track his movements for six months. Tagging animals always comes with risks, so the team was relieved to find him again.
“We are happy that he seems to be very healthy,” she added.
He’s a good man, that Eric.
Let’s have a look at some of the footage researchers managed to capture:
Go you good thing.
Dr Jean Harris, of WILDOCEANS, said that finding a coelacanth was “like looking for a needle in a haystack”, and said “seeing the coelacanth electrified everyone on board”.
“It lets us know that coelacanth are resident to the iSimangaliso park – this can help us work out how long they live, but also that there are so few because if there were more we would be seeing a lot more individuals,” she said.
Hopefully, sightings like this will prevent, or at the very least reduce, the chances of oil well exploration in the area.
While you’re here, let’s enjoy a few coelacanth facts via WIRED:
Coelacanths have a unique form of locomotion. One striking feature of the coelacanth is its four fleshy fins, which extend away from its body like limbs and move in an alternating pattern. The movement of alternate paired fins resembles the movement of the forelegs and hindlegs of a tetrapod walking on land.
Their jaws are hinged to open wide. Unique to any other living animal, the coelacanth has an intracranial joint, a hinge in its skull that allows it to open its mouth extremely wide to consume large prey.
Coelacanths have an electric sense. Coelacanths have a rostral organ in their snouts that is part of an electrosensory system. They likely use electroreception to avoid obstacles and detect prey.
They don’t taste good. People, and most likely other fish-eating animals, don’t eat coelacanths because their flesh has high amounts of oil, urea, wax esters, and other compounds that give them a foul flavor and can cause sickness. They’re also slimy; not only do their scales ooze mucus, but their bodies exude large quantities of oil.
At least tasting like garbage should prevent overfishing from us humans.
Eric and co., long may your survival continue.
