Forget the records set by the likes of 80-year-old elephants or 150-year-old tortoises, one animal puts these ageing animals to shame.
Researchers have used radiocarbon dating to reveal that Greenland sharks can live to the age of 400 making them the longest-living vertebrates on Earth and capable of living twice as long as fellow marine creature, the bowhead whale.
Traditional methods for determining the age of a species involves analysing calcified tissue. In particular, it involves counting natural growth rings on the scales, vertebrate, fin spines, and teeth in a similar way to counting growth rings on a tree.
Fish ages are then typically combined with measurements of length and weight to achieve age at maturity, life span, mortality, and production.
To study and determine the age in Greenland sharks, the team behind the study applied these radiocarbon dating techniques to the eye lenses of 28 females caught as by-catch. This analysis suggested that the average lifespan of the sharks studied was at least 272 years.
This is coupled with the fact that the sharks have extremely slow growth rates, around 1cm a year.
The two largest sharks in the study, at 493cm and 502cm, were estimated to be about 335 and 392 years old respectively. In addition, previous reports have suggested female Greenland sharks reach sexual maturity at lengths greater than 400cm, therefore the fish should reach sexual maturity at the age of at least 156 years old.
This slow growth rate also suggests the sharks benefit from an exceptionally long life.
It should be noted though that the findings of this study cover a broad age range and were made using a relatively small sample size.
Author Julius Nielsen, from the University of Copenhagen told WIRED there is "uncertainty" in his findings.
"We reported the oldest shark to be at least 272 years old. In more detail, it means that with 95 per cent certainty the oldest shark was between 272 and 512 years old. It is most likely around the 390 mark, but uncertainty is associated [with the study]," Nielsen said.
This article was originally published by WIRED UK
