SATs verse presents eight most amazing
living fossils number 110 of wars it is
previously then believed that the sea
sponge is the oldest known animal
however biologists say that this is no
longer true the ten afore is actually
the oldest living animal they are also
known as comb jelly and they first
emerged about 700 million years ago they
aren't the cutest creature they are
striped jelly blobs that move through
the sea by propelled rows of cilia the
fact that these creatures have been
around for so long is truly amazing
number two coelacanth
coelacanth are a unique fish which was
thought to have gone extinct around the
same time as the dinosaurs close to 65
million years ago in 1938 this fish was
rediscovered off the coast of South
Africa they can be traced back to 80
million years ago when they populated
the water in prehistoric times they were
over 90 species today there are only two
known species living in the waters this
fish is extremely unique it has a
rostral organ in the snout which is part
of its electrosensory system he also has
a hinge in his skull that allows the
front of his cranium to swing upwards
this allows him to get large amounts of
food number three elephant sharks the
elephant shark is distantly related to
rays and sharks therefore they're not
technically sharks they're found off the
coast of New Zealand and Australia and
have been around for a very long time
recently marine biologists mapped the
genome of the elephant shark and found
that its DNA hasn't changed in close to
420 million years dinosaurs didn't
emerge until a Triassic period over 230
million years ago this means that the
elephant shark is the slowest evolving
vertebrate that we know of today
number 4 crocodiles
crocodile's first appeared 55 million
years ago the reason that they lasted so
long is because they are one of the most
deadly predators in the world they spend
their days resting in bodies of water
waiting for their prey to come to them
it is quite possible that over the years
the crocodile feasted on lizards fish
humans and even dinosaurs today they are
the largest living reptile in the world
number five the horseshoe crab the
horseshoe crab first emerged in the late
Ordovician period around 450 million
years ago
they look like crustaceans but they are
actually part of the cella Sarada
subphylum they are very close to spiders
and scorpions they've survived a number
of mass extinctions and today they are
still found crawling around the muddy
floors of the ocean sadly their numbers
are declining due to the destruction of
their habitat in Japan and the
overharvesting that occurs along the
east coast of North America many
scientists believe that if this species
has survived near destruction in the
past that they have a very good chance
of living another 450 million years
number 6 hollow cave eel this eel was
just recently discovered he lives 114
feet under the sea in the Republic of
Palau because this creature is so
different from other eels biologists
were forced to create a whole new family
to describe it they call them proto and
Jilla day after a great deal of analysis
of this creature it was found that it
has evolved for over 200 million years
today he has a short body color like
gill openings and a large head he also
has plenty of primitive features such as
90 vertebra and they're considered to be
the oldest living fossil in the world
number seven Nautilus
considering that it has stood the test
of time this creature is certainly
considered one of the eight most amazing
living fossils for the last five hundred
million years these marine mollusks
haven't really changed at all they first
appeared in the late teen brain period
they became a very significant sea
predator during the Ordovician period
they are part of the same family as the
octopus and they are the only one in the
family who has a bony structure that
forms a shell they're closely related to
the first cephalopod that first appeared
over 500 million years ago as well as
the early modern cephalopod that
appeared some 100 million years later
number 8 the alligator snapping turtle
the alligator snapping turtle has a
large heavy head with a long thick shell
he has three dorsal ridges of large
scales that make this turtle primitive
part of the reason that this species has
been walking the earth for so long is
likely because he has a lifespan of 200
years if the turtle is living in
captivity he can live between 20 and 70
years this turtle can produce between 8
and 52 eggs that hatch after an
incubation period of 3 to 4 months this
turtle is much different than most other
species it does not reach sexual
maturity until what is between 11 and 13
years old this turtle has stood the test
of time and scientists believe it will
continue to be one of the oldest living
fossils for millions of years to come
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