Rare Coelacanth Fish Found in Indonesia

Extinct Prehistoric Being Seen After 46 Years

This latest discovery of the extinct fish Coelacanth may be a clue for scientists to look outside a fish's last known habitat to find it.Coelacanths are a prehistoric fish and the proper Latin name is Latimeria Chalumnae. In Sulawesi Indonesia, the locals call it the "king of the sea." It has been described as the missing link between fish and amphibians. Coelacanths were thought to be extinct for 80 million years.

Coelacanth Characteristics

Coelacanths can reach a length of close to 6 feet and can weigh up to 150 pounds. They live in reefs and volcanic slopes at a depth of 300 feet or deeper where even the waters are cool. The African Coelacanths are dark blue, whereas the Indonesian coelacanths may be more brown than blue. They both have distinctive white flecks. The Coelacanth backbone is flexible cartilage filled with fluid. Their fin spines are hollow tubes that are very visible in fossils. The name coelacanth comes from the Greek language meaning hollow spine. Their two dorsal are accompanied by a pair of pectoral and pelvic fins. In other species, like the Walking Catfish, these fins became legs. Coelacanths are not able to walk but it does help them with balance and stability.

Coelacanth Sightings

In the 20th century, there had been three known sightings:

• The first discovery was in 1938 off the coast of Madagascar in the western Indian Ocean.
• The second sighting was in 1952 at the Island of Anjouan which belongs to the Comoros Islands in the Mozambique Channel.
• The third Coelacanth was identified in 1998 at North Sulawesi, Indonesia when a scientist took a picture of a Coelacanth being hauled to a fish market. This is 6,000 miles away from Africa on the opposite side of the Indian Ocean.

Coelacanth Research

After the discovery in 1998 in Indonesia, research teams tracked the groups of Coelacanths in Africa and Indonesia and looked for new discoveries. In 2000, a group of Coelacanths was discovered in South Africa. DNA samples have been taken of all groups to see if they are of the same origin. The Coelacanth rescue mission, which tries to protect the Comoros population, has posted their latest discovery on their web site. The mission has different names including, "fish out of time" and "old four legs".

Construction of a research facility called the CoelaCenter was started four years ago on Grand Comoro Island in the fishing village of Itsoundzou. It was funded by private contributions and partially completed. Three months ago, the United Nations Development Project office in Comoros agreed to finance the next phase. Ongoing news, pictures and projects can be found at the Dinofish website, which is authored by the Coelacanth Rescue Mission.