- 1 day ago
- #coelacanth
- #documentary
Documentary, PBS Nova Ancient Creature of the Deep-"PBS Nova: Ancient Creature of the Deep" episode #5 is a quiz question about the coelacanth, a fish thought to be extinct until it was discovered in 1938. Question 5 asks about the coelacanth's ability to sense its environment using a specialized organ. The answer is that coelacanths use an electrical field sensor called a rostral organ, which allows them to sense prey at depths of up to 2,200 feet.
The coelacanth: The program focuses on the coelacanth, a "living fossil" that has changed little in 400 million years.
The discovery: A living coelacanth was discovered in 1938, off the coast of South Africa, by Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer, after which it was identified by scientist J.L.B. Smith.
Anatomy: The coelacanth has unusual features, such as peduncular fins that have bones and could be a precursor to feet.
The quiz: The fifth question on the PBS Nova website is about the coelacanth's sensory organ.
The answer: The coelacanth uses a rostral organ to sense electrical fields and locate prey in the deep ocean, as deep as 2,200 feet.
#coelacanth #Documentary
The coelacanth: The program focuses on the coelacanth, a "living fossil" that has changed little in 400 million years.
The discovery: A living coelacanth was discovered in 1938, off the coast of South Africa, by Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer, after which it was identified by scientist J.L.B. Smith.
Anatomy: The coelacanth has unusual features, such as peduncular fins that have bones and could be a precursor to feet.
The quiz: The fifth question on the PBS Nova website is about the coelacanth's sensory organ.
The answer: The coelacanth uses a rostral organ to sense electrical fields and locate prey in the deep ocean, as deep as 2,200 feet.
#coelacanth #Documentary
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LearningTranscript
01:00On a moonless but fairly bright night, you can actually see those eyes glowing.
01:07For over half a century, the search has persisted.
01:14There have been doctors who died trying to find these fish.
01:18Those who come in contact with it are changed forever.
01:24You get this kind of science fiction chill in the back of your neck and going down your spine.
01:30A creature that offers tantalizing clues to the evolution of all life on Earth, including us.
01:37I did see one alive, and I never got over that.
01:42A creature thought to have been extinct for over 50 million years.
01:46It's alive! It's alive! It's alive!
01:50An ancient creature of the deep, up next on NOVA.
01:55Corporate funding for NOVA is provided by Sprint.
02:14Additional funding is provided by the Park Foundation, dedicated to education and quality television.
02:24And by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and by contributions to your PBS station from viewers like you.
02:45In Sadwana Bay, South Africa, a team of divers prepares to attempt a descent of several hundred feet into the Indian Ocean
02:53to search for a mysterious, ancient creature.
03:00Deep dives here are always dangerous.
03:04Rescue divers are in place.
03:07An emergency medical team hovers nearby.
03:11Each diver carries several tanks, different compressed gases, to breathe at different depths.
03:19Any mix-up here could be fatal.
03:23This is my oxygen. It's closed.
03:25I'm going to breathe this at depths deeper than 10 meters.
03:28This is air to travel down, and on my back, I have the helium mixture to breathe at depth.
03:35Everything is planned, down to the minute.
03:37Our total dive is going to take us exactly two hours.
03:42So 15 minutes down, then on the bottom, and then the rest of the time coming up.
03:53For a quarter of an hour, they drift down, through a world ever quieter, ever colder, ever darker.
04:13Then, at a depth of 300 feet, something catches their eye.
04:24We saw the continental drop-off.
04:28We headed straight for it.
04:30We saw a cave.
04:34We went straight into that cave, just looked underneath it.
04:38A great primitive fish, a coelacanth.
04:47Its ancestors date back 400 million years, to a time when all Earth's creatures lived underwater,
04:55and the great transition to living on land was about to begin.
04:59Was the coelacanth, with its fleshy, leg-like fins,
05:08the missing link in evolution from fish to land animals?
05:15Coelacanths were long considered extinct,
05:18known to science only through ancient fossils
05:20that displayed these curious, limb-like fins.
05:23But one fateful day in 1938, everything changed.
05:30Hello, welcome.
05:32Welcome to Six Lakes Street.
05:35Marjorie Courtney Latimer was then the 31-year-old curator
05:38of a small natural history museum in East London, South Africa.
05:43Come, welcome in.
05:46She remembers well how her life was turned upside down
05:49by the mysterious coelacanth.
05:51Nobody ever knew the difficulties and the trauma that I went through.
05:59I went through absolute trauma saving that fish.
06:04Because nobody wanted to know.
06:07I would say even my family in the end began to think I was cuckoo.
06:11I suppose I was very cuckoo.
06:13On December 22nd, 1938, a fishing trawler steamed into the East London harbour.
06:31On the deck was a pile of sea light dredged up after a freak storm.
06:36But these fish were not all meant for market.
06:43It was a pile of sponges and starfish and rat-tailed fish.
06:49You name it, they were there.
06:51When putting together new exhibits at the museum,
06:55Marjorie often obtained samples from local fishermen.
06:58And from underneath this crowd, there was this one fin sticking out.
07:08This blue fin.
07:10And I thought, what on earth could this be?
07:14Then I moved all the fish.
07:16There was this beautiful, beautiful fish.
07:18Iridescent colours all over the fish.
07:24Just solid.
07:25Just on five foot long.
07:28Rough scales.
07:31Very big eyes.
07:32Very big blue eyes.
07:35These peculiar limb-like fins.
07:39Something I'd never seen in a fish in my life.
07:43Marjorie had been an avid collector since childhood.
07:46She knew instinctively that this was an important find.
07:51I thought, no, whatever happens, this fish has got to be saved.
07:58Although she was able to cart the fish back to the museum,
08:01this was 1938.
08:03And there was no easy way to refrigerate and preserve the specimen.
08:09She inquired at the local mortuary.
08:11And so I went in, and this really tall, really gaunt-looking gentleman said,
08:17what could he do for me?
08:19So I said, you know, I've got this beautiful fish.
08:22And I said, I have to try and save it.
08:26And I wondered if you could put it into the mortuary.
08:28So he drew himself up, right nearly up to the roof.
08:33And he said, I've never heard of such an iniquitous suggestion.
08:38Most definitely not.
08:40Most definitely not.
08:42In desperation, she sent off a note and a sketch to a professor at Rhodes University,
08:48a hundred miles away in Grahamstown.
08:50Professor J.L.B. Smith was trained as a chemist,
08:56but his passion was ichthyology, the study of fish.
09:01His work in this field would soon change the face of science.
09:05Let me take you to L4.
09:09Professor Smith's one-time secretary and archivist is Jean Pope.
09:13This is it.
09:14This is a very interesting file.
09:17It's correspondence with Marjorie Courtney Latimer from 1936 onwards.
09:23And in this file is, I think, the original drawing.
09:32That is the original drawing by Marjorie Courtney Latimer.
09:36And as soon as he saw that, he knew that it was something really rare.
09:46For J.L.B. Smith, it was more than rare.
09:50It was an impossibility.
09:53If that drawing were correct, this fish should have died out with the dinosaurs.
10:02Smith's wife, Margaret, described his reaction.
10:06It was the 3rd of January, 1939.
10:09And I suddenly felt almost shockwaves coming from my husband,
10:13who was standing up reading a letter.
10:16And through the back of the letter, I could see a picture of a fish.
10:21And he pointed to the drawing of the tail.
10:24And he said, you see that tail?
10:26That tail belongs to fishes that have been extinct for millions and millions of years.
10:36Smith was confused and puzzled.
10:38He almost hoped he was wrong about the identification of this creature.
10:43But if he was right, the implications were staggering.
10:47Despite his initial excitement, he was unable to examine the fish in person for nearly two months,
10:54leaving Marjorie Courtney Latimer to deal with this strange creature alone.
10:58He probably thought I was making a mistake, although I had sketched it,
11:06and I had written all these letters to him about it.
11:09But he probably thought, you know, I was young and inexperienced with ichthyology.
11:15It was a funny thing to just suddenly decide to bring a fossil fish out into the open.
11:24Marjorie was left with no choice.
11:27In order to save the fish for scientific study, she had it skinned and mounted.
11:32But without any preservatives, the internal organs had to be discarded.
11:38This was later described by Smith as one of the most terrible tragedies in science.
11:45So there were a lot of confusions in the beginning,
11:50and I got blamed for losing the innards of the fish.
11:57I had to bear that all my life.
12:02But still, the main thing was we saved the skin and the tough specimen.
12:09On the 16th of February, at 10 o'clock, Professor Smith walked into my office.
12:21I'd been waiting for him since the 22nd of December.
12:24That first sight hit me like a white-hot blast, Smith later wrote.
12:32It made me feel shaky and queer.
12:35My body tingled.
12:36I stood as if stricken to stone.
12:39He walked round the table,
12:41and he said,
12:44this fish will be on the looks of every scientist in the world.
12:50It's a coelacanth.
12:56Since J.L.B. Smith identified the strange fish,
12:59he was able to christen it.
13:01He named the genus Latimeria,
13:04after the woman who had saved the fish for science,
13:06and the species Calumni,
13:09after the river near where it was caught.
13:12The press went wild with the news,
13:14calling it the most important scientific discovery of the century.
13:18A creature from a group thought to be extinct for millions of years was alive.
13:25It was a living fossil,
13:28a window into the past.
13:31The term living fossil had been coined by Darwin.
13:35In his writings on evolution,
13:38he argued that somewhere,
13:39most likely in the ocean depths,
13:42some creatures would have eluded the pressures to evolve,
13:45and changed little from prehistoric times.
13:50Now, here was a living coelacanth,
13:53strikingly similar to fossils more than 50 million years old.
13:57Well, we're down in the basement of the museum now,
14:10and the fossil fish collection is through here.
14:13Let's open the door.
14:14John Masey is a paleontologist
14:16at the American Museum of Natural History in New York.
14:20Collections arranged in a systematic sequence,
14:23or in an evolutionary sequence.
14:27And the coelacanth fossils we keep in these cabinets.
14:32For example, here are some small coelacanths
14:36from right around here.
14:41These probably live in fresh water.
14:43These are about a shade over 200 million years old.
14:48Now, these didn't get much bigger than this.
14:49These coelacanths lived at a time
14:53when North America was still attached to Africa.
14:56So New York could have been very close to Morocco at this time.
15:02Coelacanths first appeared,
15:04along with the other major groups of fishes we know today,
15:07about 400 million years ago.
15:11Then, the Earth was more or less one large land mass.
15:15Over time, this supercontinent separated
15:20into what is now essentially the modern globe,
15:24leaving coelacanth fossils on every continent except Antarctica.
15:31These fossils had been known to science since the 1830s.
15:36They'd been found in widely varying sizes,
15:40but with several distinguishing features.
15:41An oddly hinged joint in the head.
15:47Fins that had a limb-like structure.
15:51And hollow fin rays supporting the distinctive tail.
15:57The oddly spelled name comes from the Greek,
16:00meaning hollow spine.
16:01J.L.B. Smith wrote that
16:07finding a living coelacanth
16:08was like walking down the street
16:10and running into a dinosaur.
16:20Scientists were skeptical
16:22that the fish in East London
16:23was a true living fossil.
16:27Even Smith worried
16:28that perhaps the coelacanth
16:30had lain somewhere in the ocean bed
16:32in some preserving ooze or mud
16:34these millions of years.
16:37But Margery soon assured him
16:39that the fish had snapped at its captors
16:41before dying.
16:44The press played up the idea
16:46of a missing link,
16:48an idea also derived
16:49from Darwin's theory of evolution.
16:53Darwin proposed
16:54that life came out of the sea,
16:57evolving from fishes
16:58to amphibians
17:00to mammals
17:01to us
17:02over millions of years.
17:05Was the coelacanth
17:07a missing link
17:08that interim stepped
17:09from water to land?
17:12Was this fish
17:13the key to understanding
17:15our own evolution?
17:16All life came from the sea.
17:25And when we realize
17:26that life is really
17:27just an evolution
17:28of forms,
17:29these are the closest
17:32relatives to our ancestors
17:33and then we
17:35intellectually
17:36would like to know
17:37who was the closest,
17:38who was the missing link.
17:40John McCosker
17:41is an evolutionary biologist
17:43at the California
17:43Academy of Sciences.
17:45We're dying to know
17:47what was that step
17:48from the fishes
17:49to the amphibians.
17:50And when they discovered
17:51coelacanth fossils
17:52they said,
17:53aha,
17:53it must be this,
17:55this thing that walked
17:56out of the water.
17:58And when they discovered
17:58the living fossil
17:59they said,
18:00that's it,
18:00our ancestor.
18:02It's alive.
18:06But Marjorie's fish
18:07was all they had
18:08and it was only
18:09skin and bones.
18:11The innards
18:12had been lost.
18:12And we were
18:14by such unfortunate
18:15circumstances
18:16prevented from being
18:17able to find out
18:18what most of its
18:19body and organs
18:20were like.
18:24Were the coelacanth's
18:26internal organs
18:27like those of other
18:28fishes
18:28or more like those
18:29of amphibians,
18:30reptiles and mammals?
18:33It therefore became
18:35more than normally
18:36desirable,
18:37really imperative
18:38to find more.
18:39This would become
18:40J.L.B. Smith's
18:42life's work
18:42to find another
18:44coelacanth
18:44and this time
18:45an intact specimen.
18:49J.L.B. Smith
18:50was a hard man.
18:52He was a very,
18:53very focused man.
18:55And that
18:56tended to turn
18:57people off
18:58who didn't share
18:58his point of view.
19:00Mike Bruton
19:01works today
19:01as an ecologist
19:02here in South Africa.
19:04He studied
19:05under J.L.B. Smith.
19:06Well, J.L.B. was
19:09a remarkable fisherman
19:10and actually
19:12predicted
19:13that the first
19:15coelacanth
19:15didn't naturally
19:16live off East London,
19:17that it was a more
19:18tropical,
19:19deep water animal.
19:22Smith felt certain
19:23that if coelacanths
19:24were native
19:24to the highly
19:25fished waters
19:26off East London,
19:27they would have been
19:27caught many times
19:28before.
19:30He reasoned
19:31that Marjorie's fish
19:32inhabited the deep
19:33tropical reefs
19:34to the north
19:34and had been
19:36driven toward
19:36East London
19:37by currents
19:38running down
19:38through the
19:39Mozambique Channel.
19:42So he distributed
19:43leaflets all over
19:44the East African coast.
19:48Smith's leaflets
19:50in English,
19:50French and Portuguese
19:51offered a
19:52hundred pound reward,
19:54an enormous sum
19:55for a local fisherman.
19:59But he still
20:00faced tremendous odds
20:02against finding
20:03a second specimen.
20:04After all,
20:05the coelacanth
20:06had proved
20:06amazingly adept
20:07at eluding discovery.
20:15J.O.B.
20:15was a fisherman,
20:16a mad fisherman.
20:19As with the
20:20first specimen
20:21caught by
20:22trawler fishermen,
20:23Smith was counting
20:23on those who
20:24made a living
20:25from the sea.
20:26It's very fresh.
20:27And like Smith,
20:28biologist John
20:29McCosker
20:30knows where to
20:31ask when looking
20:32for a particular fish.
20:33These men
20:34are the best
20:34ichthyologists.
20:36I'm sure
20:37they know
20:38the differences
20:38between,
20:39the subtle differences
20:40between,
20:41well,
20:42different species,
20:43different populations.
20:44If you wanted
20:45to find rare fish,
20:47you don't go to
20:48an ichthyologist
20:48or a museum.
20:50You go to a fish market.
20:52And these guys
20:53know fish.
20:53I mean,
20:54it's their whole life
20:54is fish.
20:55The fishermen
20:58of the Comoros Islands
20:59would prove
21:00to be a godsend
21:01for J.L.B. Smith.
21:05The Comoros
21:06are a small group
21:07of volcanic islands
21:08then controlled
21:09by the French
21:10just north
21:11of Madagascar.
21:16Here,
21:17men have fished
21:18in the same way
21:19for over a thousand years
21:21and were said
21:23occasionally
21:24to pull out of the water
21:25a fish they called
21:26gombessa.
21:31Comoran fishermen
21:32had no idea
21:33this fish might shed light
21:34on one of the greatest
21:35scientific mysteries
21:36of all time.
21:38But the substantial reward
21:40caught everyone's attention.
21:49Then,
21:50in December 1952,
21:52from the Comoros,
21:53Smith got the telegram
21:55he'd hoped
21:55and prayed for
21:56for 14 years.
22:00It came from
22:01an English sea trader
22:02he'd met in Madagascar,
22:04Eric Hunt.
22:06Have five-foot
22:07specimen coelacanth.
22:10Injected formalin here.
22:12Killed 20th.
22:14Advise.
22:15Smith was beside himself.
22:19Did Hunt have
22:20enough preservative?
22:22It would take weeks
22:23to reach the Comoros
22:24by boat.
22:25By then,
22:26the fish might putrefy.
22:28He'd not spent
22:29all these years
22:30searching
22:30to let this specimen
22:32slip away.
22:35Smith turned
22:35to his connections
22:36in the South African government
22:37to try to borrow a plane.
22:40Finally,
22:40calling on the
22:41prime minister himself,
22:42D.F. Milan.
22:43Milan was at his
22:45beach cottage
22:46in 1952
22:47and he got that
22:48famous phone call
22:48from J.L.B. Smith
22:49and he realised
22:50that J.L.B. Smith
22:51had something important
22:52to tell him,
22:53that South Africa's
22:54prestige was at stake.
22:56As a South African,
22:57Mike Bruton
22:57remembers the story
22:59of the second coelacanth
23:00well.
23:00and as a result,
23:02Milan eventually
23:03gave permission
23:03for that military
23:04Dakota to fly
23:05to the Comores
23:06since being described
23:08as a sort of
23:08military aeroplane
23:10going to a foreign
23:11country taking a mad
23:12scientist to fetch
23:13a dead fish.
23:20Well,
23:20this is Dakota
23:216832,
23:23the one that we
23:23flew to fetch
23:25the coelacanth
23:26in 1952.
23:27Major General
23:29Duncan Ralston
23:30was a lieutenant
23:31at the time
23:32and the senior
23:33navigator
23:33on the flight
23:34that took J.L.B. Smith
23:36to the Comoros.
23:38Professor Smith
23:39actually sat about here
23:40and he was
23:42so tense
23:43and so excited.
23:46We had a long flight
23:47over the sea
23:47with almost
23:49no navigation
23:50haze
23:50but we landed
23:52and there
23:54was the fish.
23:57The fish
23:58smelled strongly
23:59of the formaldehyde
24:00Hunt had used
24:01to try to preserve it
24:02and it was a bit
24:04the worse for wear
24:05having been carted
24:07across the island
24:08by the fishermen
24:08who caught it.
24:11Nevertheless,
24:12after 14 years
24:13of searching,
24:15Smith finally
24:15had his coelacanth.
24:17I could not
24:20bring myself
24:21to touch it
24:22and I knelt
24:23down to look
24:24and I'm not
24:26ashamed
24:26to say
24:27that after all
24:29that long strain
24:30I wept.
24:32Professor Smith
24:42insisted
24:43that we
24:44get this
24:45fish back
24:46to the
24:47aeroplane
24:47and take off
24:48as quickly
24:48as possible.
24:50I'm not sure
24:51to this day
24:52whether we
24:52did in fact
24:53have proper
24:54diplomatic clearance
24:55to land
24:56at the island
24:56or to take
24:58the fish away.
24:58I know subsequently
25:00the French government
25:01were enormously
25:02cross about
25:02the whole affair
25:03because they felt
25:04it belonged to them.
25:06So we flew back
25:08we had to fly
25:10the fish down
25:11to Cape Town
25:11because Dr. Milan
25:13wanted to see it.
25:15Dr. Milan said
25:16when he saw
25:17the fish
25:18why it's very ugly
25:19and is this
25:20where we came from?
25:24Milan was a creationist
25:26and the father
25:27of South African apartheid.
25:29Aiding Smith
25:31in his evolutionary
25:32research
25:32was dangerous
25:33politically.
25:36But South Africa's
25:38prestige was at stake
25:39and Milan
25:40welcomed the publicity.
25:45This is
25:46Mubijal
25:47Donald Marson
25:48reported.
25:50Meet Professor Smith
25:52of Grahamstown
25:52South Africa
25:53with a model
25:54of that famous fish
25:55the coelacan.
25:57Coelacan
25:58Smiths are close
25:58relatives of the fish
25:59that scientists
26:00consider as the
26:01ancestors of all
26:02land animals.
26:04The coelacans
26:05have lived
26:05for probably
26:06350 million years
26:08and in that time
26:10they have changed
26:10but little.
26:12Yes, the professor
26:13says the fish
26:14is a kind of
26:15ancestor of man.
26:16Poor fish.
26:20In his lab
26:21Smith began
26:22the first ever
26:23dissection
26:24of a coelacanth
26:25peering into a world
26:27never before accessible
26:28to science.
26:30What he discovered
26:31was that the coelacanth
26:33is different
26:33in many ways
26:35from all other
26:35modern fish.
26:38Not only did it have
26:39strange limb-like fins
26:41it had no real
26:42backbone.
26:43Instead,
26:44Smith found
26:45a more primitive
26:45structure
26:46called a notochord.
26:48This is
26:49part of the notochord
26:51of the coelacanth
26:52that was dissected
26:54here
26:54and it's simply
26:55a hollow tube
26:57it's a gristly tube
26:58which extends
26:59from just behind
27:00the brain
27:01right through
27:02into the tail
27:03and it's filled
27:04with a light oil
27:05under a very
27:06slight pressure.
27:06This kind of
27:10oil-filled
27:11skeletal structure
27:12is unique.
27:13Most adult
27:14vertebrates
27:14have well-developed
27:15backbones
27:16especially those
27:17that live on land
27:18including human beings.
27:23The entire fish
27:25is filled with oil.
27:27There's not a single
27:28air sinus
27:28in the fish.
27:30So like a diver's
27:31depth gauge
27:32it's incompressible
27:33which in theory
27:34anyway
27:35would allow it
27:36to swim
27:36on at depths
27:37of a thousand meters
27:38or more.
27:42But it was
27:42the limb-like fins
27:44that really
27:44caught the attention
27:45of Smith
27:45and the world.
27:47They had their
27:48own internal skeleton
27:49more like our limbs
27:51than the fins
27:52of a normal fish.
27:54As you see
27:55the fins
27:55are more like
27:56paddles
27:57than ordinary fins.
28:00Indeed
28:00our arms
28:01were developed
28:02from a central fin
28:03like that
28:04of this fish
28:05I have no doubt
28:07that this fish
28:08falls about
28:09on the bottom
28:10quite easily.
28:14Once again
28:15the press
28:16trumpeted the coelacanth
28:17as the missing link
28:19a creature
28:20that bridged
28:21the gap
28:21between fish
28:22and primitive
28:23land animals.
28:26Scientists
28:26museums
28:27and even zoos
28:29now wanted
28:29their own coelacanth.
28:32The London Zoo
28:33offered a reward
28:33of a thousand pounds
28:35for a live specimen.
28:38Smith capitalized
28:39on the excitement
28:40surrounding his find.
28:42He wrote a book
28:43Old Four Legs
28:45and created
28:46a legend.
28:47Three Old Four Legs
28:51which is one of the
28:51great scientific
28:52books of all time
28:54he captured
28:55the public imagination
28:56partly because
28:57it's a fantastic fish
28:59but I think
29:00we must also
29:00give credit
29:01to JLB
29:01for a really good
29:03marketing exercise.
29:04He weaved
29:05the human story
29:06all the intrigues
29:07of the Comores
29:09he's working
29:10with a South African
29:11Prime Minister
29:12who didn't believe
29:12in evolution
29:13and made
29:14the coelacanth
29:15story come alive
29:16for people
29:17gave them an
29:18entree into this
29:19fantastic scientific
29:20world from which
29:21most people
29:21are excluded.
29:24Through his research
29:25and his book
29:26Smith's name
29:27became forever
29:28tied to the coelacanth
29:30like Marjorie
29:31Courtney Latimer's.
29:33But what of the
29:34Comoran fishermen
29:35who actually
29:36caught the fish?
29:37He's seen here
29:38getting his reward.
29:40His name is
29:41Ahmed Hussein.
29:43This is the first
29:51time he's been
29:52interviewed.
29:53Hussein says
29:54he never met
29:54Smith
29:55but recognizes
29:56his fish.
30:11He says
30:12he got the reward
30:13but other fishermen
30:14took credit
30:15for the catch.
30:24Until this moment
30:25not even Hussein's
30:27own neighbors
30:27knew what he'd done
30:29but his catch
30:30back in 1952
30:32put the Comoros
30:33on the scientific map.
30:35From then on
30:38this tiny archipelago
30:39would be acknowledged
30:40as the prime location
30:41for finding
30:42Latimeria calumny.
30:47As the islands
30:49were then under
30:49French colonial rule
30:51an international
30:52embargo was declared.
30:55Comoran fishermen
30:56using the same
30:57time-honored methods
30:58of hook and line
30:59would catch many more
31:01coelacanths.
31:02they would all
31:03be sent to France.
31:07For the next 23 years
31:09the coelacanth
31:10was almost exclusively
31:11studied in the
31:12Department of
31:13Comparative Anatomy
31:14here at the
31:14Museum of Natural
31:15History in Paris.
31:19Daniel Robineau
31:20was part of the
31:21team of scientists
31:22which conducted
31:23the first
31:24comprehensive
31:24dissections
31:25of Latimeria
31:26using properly
31:27preserved specimens.
31:32This is one
31:33of the many
31:33specimens we
31:34received from
31:34the Comoros.
31:37A cut was made
31:38across the head
31:39giving us access
31:40to the inside
31:41of the skull.
31:43One can see
31:44very clearly
31:44the most interior
31:45part of the
31:46notochord.
31:50The French team
31:51found a series
31:52of contradictory
31:53features.
31:54In some ways
31:56the coelacanth
31:57looked very
31:58primitive
31:58with organs
32:00and glands
32:00similar to
32:01those of
32:01sharks and
32:02rays
32:02and a tiny
32:04heart
32:04which is
32:05little more
32:06than an
32:06expansion
32:07in the
32:07main
32:07blood vessel.
32:10In other
32:11ways
32:11the coelacanth
32:12resembled
32:13tetrapods
32:14those four
32:15limbed creatures
32:16that include
32:17everything
32:17from the
32:18very first
32:18land dwellers
32:19to human
32:20beings.
32:21There are
32:28several
32:28characteristics
32:29that show
32:29similarities
32:30to tetrapods.
32:35There's the
32:35presence of a
32:35vestigial lung
32:36and of course
32:41here are the
32:41lobed fins
32:42and here
32:45on this
32:46x-ray
32:46we can see
32:47the vein
32:48that brings
32:48the abdominal
32:49blood back
32:49up to the
32:50heart.
32:51This vessel
32:52is a genuine
32:53vena cava
32:53like that
32:54found in
32:55tetrapods.
32:56The vascular
32:57system of
32:57almost all
32:58other fishes
32:59is completely
33:00different.
33:00So was the
33:06coelacanth
33:07the closest
33:08living relative
33:08of tetrapods?
33:10The missing
33:10link?
33:11Some
33:12scientists
33:12said yes
33:13others
33:14no
33:14as they
33:15continued
33:15to explore
33:16this
33:16mysterious
33:17creature's
33:18anatomy.
33:20Its brain
33:20which unfortunately
33:21you can't
33:22see
33:22is incredibly
33:23small.
33:24The
33:25brain
33:26case
33:27is probably
33:28about that
33:28size
33:29but the
33:29brain
33:29itself
33:30is no
33:30bigger
33:31than the
33:31end
33:32segment
33:32of
33:33one's
33:33thumb.
33:35In the
33:35snout
33:35of the
33:36fish
33:36a
33:36strange
33:37jelly
33:37filled
33:38cavity
33:38was
33:38discovered.
33:40It
33:40initially
33:40puzzled
33:41researchers
33:41but is
33:42now
33:42thought
33:43to be
33:43an
33:43elaborate
33:43electro
33:44receptive
33:45organ.
33:46And we
33:46believe
33:46that
33:47this
33:47is
33:47used
33:48to
33:48detect
33:48minute
33:49electrical
33:50impulses
33:51put out
33:52by
33:52prey
33:53organisms.
33:55Its
33:55eye
33:56in life
33:56looks
33:57much
33:57bigger
33:57than
33:57that
33:58and
33:58it's
33:58like
33:59a
33:59crystal
33:59ball
34:00and
34:00it's
34:00as
34:00clear
34:01as
34:02anything.
34:04And
34:04comorins
34:06say that
34:06coelacanths
34:07have
34:07fire in
34:08its
34:09eyes.
34:10And that's
34:10because it
34:10collects
34:11any light
34:12that's
34:12available
34:13and reflects
34:13it back
34:14rather like
34:14a cat's
34:14eyes
34:15at
34:15night.
34:15these
34:25specialized
34:25features
34:26may help
34:27to
34:27explain
34:27why
34:28coelacanths
34:28have
34:29survived
34:29for
34:30400
34:30million
34:31years.
34:33Their
34:33outward
34:34appearance
34:34has
34:34changed
34:35little
34:35but
34:36internally
34:37they
34:37must
34:38have
34:38adapted
34:38to
34:39changing
34:39environments
34:40as the
34:41earth
34:41itself
34:42was
34:42transformed
34:43over
34:43time.
34:47Whether
34:48the
34:48remarkable
34:49features
34:49of
34:50Latimeria
34:50developed
34:514 million
34:51years ago
34:52or 40
34:53or 400
34:54we may
34:55never
34:55know
34:55but
34:57it
34:57has
34:57found
34:57its
34:58niche
34:58and
34:58continues
34:59to
34:59avoid
35:00extinction
35:00thanks
35:02in part
35:03to
35:03two
35:03other
35:04crucial
35:04adaptations
35:05its
35:06advanced
35:06method
35:07of
35:07reproduction
35:07and
35:08its
35:08extremely
35:09low
35:09metabolism.
35:11So
35:11they
35:12wouldn't
35:12need
35:12much
35:12food
35:13they're
35:13living
35:14in fact
35:15in a
35:15low
35:15food
35:16environment
35:16there
35:17isn't
35:17a
35:17whole
35:17lot
35:18of
35:18food
35:18around
35:18for
35:18them
35:19and
35:19this
35:19may
35:20have
35:20something
35:20to
35:20do
35:20with
35:21their
35:21long
35:21survival
35:21they
35:22have
35:23adapted
35:23to
35:23this
35:24low
35:24food
35:24environment
35:25Phil
35:27Heemstra
35:27has
35:28been
35:28studying
35:28coelacanths
35:29for over
35:29two
35:30decades
35:30and
35:31has
35:31been
35:31fascinated
35:32by
35:32the
35:32way
35:32they
35:32reproduce
35:33It
35:34looks
35:35like
35:35an
35:35orange
35:35but
35:35it's
35:36actually
35:36a
35:37model
35:37of
35:37a
35:38coelacanth
35:38egg
35:38this
35:40is
35:40a
35:40life
35:40size
35:40model
35:41they
35:41have
35:42the
35:42largest
35:42eggs
35:43known
35:43amongst
35:43fishes
35:44The
35:45huge
35:45coelacanth
35:46eggs
35:47filled
35:47with
35:47nutrients
35:48to
35:48feed
35:48the
35:49growing
35:49embryo
35:50were
35:50discovered
35:50by
35:51the
35:51French
35:51in
35:511955
35:52they
35:54were
35:55at
35:55first
35:55thought
35:55to
35:55be
35:56released
35:56and
35:56fertilized
35:57on
35:57the
35:57ocean
35:58floor
35:58until
35:59a
35:59freshly
36:00dissected
36:00specimen
36:01yielded
36:01a
36:01surprise
36:02In
36:031975
36:04at the
36:05American
36:05Museum
36:06of
36:06Natural
36:06History
36:07in
36:07New
36:07York
36:07they
36:08found
36:09a
36:09pregnant
36:09female
36:09with
36:10five
36:10babies
36:10inside
36:11her
36:11so
36:12then
36:12we
36:12knew
36:12they
36:12had
36:13internal
36:13fertilization
36:14and
36:14they
36:14gave
36:14birth
36:15to
36:15living
36:15young
36:15like
36:16sharks
36:16do
36:16here's
36:20a
36:20model
36:20of
36:21one
36:21of
36:21those
36:21five
36:21babies
36:22and
36:23each
36:23of
36:23them
36:23still
36:24had
36:24a
36:24large
36:24yolk
36:24sack
36:25although
36:25the
36:25fins
36:26are
36:26fairly
36:26well
36:26developed
36:27as
36:27you
36:27can
36:27see
36:27the
36:27scales
36:28are
36:28developed
36:28although
36:29fossils
36:30had
36:30shown
36:31tiny
36:31coelacanths
36:32inside
36:32an
36:32adult
36:33researchers
36:34couldn't
36:34tell
36:34if
36:35the
36:35adult
36:35was
36:35about
36:35to
36:35give
36:36birth
36:36or
36:37had
36:37eaten
36:37the
36:37little
36:38ones
36:38now
36:39they
36:40knew
36:40coelacanths
36:42give
36:42birth
36:42to
36:43live
36:43young
36:43and
36:44have
36:44done
36:44so
36:45for
36:45200
36:46million
36:46years
36:47well
36:49before
36:49mammals
36:50came
36:50along
36:50the
36:51coelacanth
36:51was
36:51using
36:52a
36:52mammal
36:52like
36:53reproductive
36:53strategy
36:54ensuring
36:55that
36:55most
36:56of
36:56its
36:56young
36:57would
36:57survive
36:58after
37:02decades
37:03of
37:03research
37:03much
37:04had
37:04been
37:04learned
37:05but
37:06well
37:06into
37:06the
37:061980s
37:07no
37:08one
37:08had
37:08ever
37:08observed
37:09a
37:09coelacanth
37:09alive
37:10for
37:10more
37:10than
37:11a
37:11few
37:11hours
37:11the
37:14coelacanth
37:14lives
37:15in
37:15deep
37:15cold
37:16water
37:16where
37:17the
37:17oxygen
37:17content
37:18is
37:18high
37:18when
37:20one
37:20is
37:20caught
37:20and
37:21brought
37:21to
37:21the
37:21warmer
37:22less
37:22oxygen
37:23rich
37:23surface
37:23water
37:24it
37:24cannot
37:24survive
37:25very
37:25long
37:26especially
37:27with
37:28the
37:28stress
37:28of
37:28capture
37:29even
37:30today
37:31aquariums
37:32have been
37:32unsuccessful
37:33in
37:33capturing
37:33and
37:34keeping
37:34a
37:34coelacanth
37:35alive
37:35so
37:38no
37:38one
37:38knew
37:39how
37:39they
37:39mate
37:39how
37:40they
37:40hunt
37:40how
37:41they
37:41elude
37:42predators
37:42in
37:42their
37:43natural
37:43habitat
37:43there
37:44was
37:44only
37:45one
37:45way
37:45to
37:46find
37:46out
37:46so
37:47go
37:48to
37:48them
37:48in
37:50a
37:50submersible
37:51nothing
37:52more
37:53than
37:53a
37:53motorized
37:54decompression
37:55chamber
37:55the
37:57man
37:57responsible
37:57for
37:58this
37:58chamber
37:58is
37:59Hans
37:59Fricke
37:59a
38:00zoologist
38:01at the
38:01Max Planck
38:01Institute
38:02in
38:02Germany
38:03he's
38:04been
38:04obsessed
38:05with
38:05the
38:05coelacanth
38:06since
38:06childhood
38:07and
38:08we
38:08thought
38:08that
38:09the
38:10thilakans
38:11occur
38:11deeper
38:11than
38:12200
38:12metres
38:13and
38:14this
38:14was
38:14the
38:14reason
38:14that
38:15we
38:15built
38:16Yago
38:18Yago
38:19was
38:19custom
38:20made
38:20by
38:20its
38:20pilot
38:21Jürgen
38:21Schauer
38:22you
38:22you
38:22have
38:22five
38:23lights
38:24each
38:24light
38:24has
38:25a
38:25power
38:25of
38:26250
38:26watts
38:27so
38:27you
38:28can
38:28impose
38:30sunlight
38:31on
38:31the
38:31seabed
38:31and
38:32we
38:32have
38:32five
38:33little
38:33thrusters
38:33these
38:35side
38:35ones
38:36are
38:36rotatable
38:36and
38:39we
38:39have
38:39three
38:39in
38:39the
38:40back
38:40for
38:40propulsion
38:41with
38:41which
38:42we
38:42can
38:42make
38:42a
38:42speed
38:43of
38:43about
38:43walking
38:44speed
38:44it's
38:45about
38:45one
38:46mile
38:46an
38:46hour
38:47Yago
38:51was
38:52brought
38:52to
38:52the
38:52deep
38:52blue
38:53waters
38:53of
38:53the
38:53Camoros
38:54where
38:56along
38:56with
38:56biologist
38:57Karen
38:57Hiesmann
38:58Fricka
38:58and
38:59Schauer
38:59could
38:59pursue
39:00the
39:00coelacan
39:00one
39:05day
39:05in
39:051987
39:06after
39:07hunting
39:07the
39:07fish
39:07for
39:08weeks
39:08to
39:08no
39:08avail
39:09Fricka
39:10was
39:10called
39:11back
39:11to
39:11Germany
39:11leaving
39:12Jürgen
39:13Schauer
39:13to
39:13continue
39:14the
39:14ever
39:14more
39:15frustrating
39:15search
39:16we
39:18were
39:18already
39:19quite
39:19desperate
39:20already
39:20everybody
39:21on
39:21the
39:21ship
39:22then
39:25at
39:259
39:26p.m.
39:26on
39:26the
39:2617th
39:27of
39:27January
39:27at
39:28a
39:28depth
39:28of
39:28600
39:29feet
39:29there
39:30it
39:30was
39:31a
39:35coelacan
39:35we
39:40did
39:40not
39:40know
39:41how
39:41the
39:41fish
39:41will
39:41behave
39:42usually
39:42the
39:43fish
39:43swim
39:43away
39:43when
39:44they
39:44see
39:44the
39:44strong
39:45lights
39:45of
39:45Yago
39:45but
39:46this
39:46fish
39:46didn't
39:47care
39:47about
39:47the
39:48lights
39:48it's
39:52so
39:52large
39:52and
39:52it's
39:53moving
39:53in
39:54such
39:54a
39:54different
39:55way
39:55than
39:55other
39:56fish
39:56do
39:56which
39:57makes
39:57it
39:57really
39:58a
39:58spectacular
39:59experience
40:00to
40:00discover
40:01a
40:01fish
40:01like
40:01this
40:02shower
40:07shower
40:07shower
40:07immediately
40:07radioed
40:08fricker
40:08with
40:09the
40:09exciting
40:09news
40:10you
40:11called
40:11me
40:12with
40:12a
40:12ship
40:12radio
40:13and
40:13I
40:13said
40:14to
40:14him
40:14give
40:15everybody
40:15a
40:15kiss
40:16I
40:16give
40:16you
40:16a
40:16bottle
40:17of
40:17champagne
40:17and
40:18so on
40:18and
40:19so on
40:19was
40:19very
40:19very
40:20enthusiastic
40:21about
40:21it
40:21and
40:28on
40:28the
40:28end
40:28of
40:28the
40:28conversation
40:29the
40:30operator
40:31said
40:31what
40:32the
40:33hell
40:33is
40:33this
40:34what
40:34you
40:34were
40:34talking
40:35about
40:35I
40:35said
40:36it's
40:36a
40:36silicon
40:36and
40:37he
40:38asked
40:38me
40:39what
40:39is
40:39a
40:39silicon
40:40I
40:40said
40:40it's
40:40an
40:40old
40:41ugly
40:41oily
40:42fish
40:43as
40:48expected
40:48coelacanths
40:49were found
40:50to live
40:50in a
40:51fairly
40:51uninhabited
40:52ecosystem
40:52and
40:53seem
40:53to
40:53have
40:54no
40:54real
40:54predators
40:55they
40:57aggregate
40:57during
40:58the
40:58day
40:58in
40:59volcanic
40:59caves
41:00and
41:01at
41:01night
41:01have
41:01been
41:02known
41:02to
41:02migrate
41:02to
41:03depths
41:03of
41:03over
41:032,000
41:04feet
41:05but
41:09unexpectedly
41:09films
41:10of the
41:11coelacanth
41:11showed
41:11how
41:12the
41:12multiple
41:12fins
41:13function
41:13and
41:14laid
41:14to
41:14rest
41:15the
41:15idea
41:15of
41:15a
41:16crawling
41:16fish
41:16first
41:17put
41:17forward
41:17by
41:18J.L.B.
41:18Smith
41:19Smith
41:22said
41:23they are
41:23creeping
41:24on the
41:24bottom
41:24like
41:25seals
41:26and
41:27of course
41:27they don't
41:27they are
41:29not
41:29walking
41:29they are
41:30continuously
41:30hovering
41:31above
41:32the
41:32ground
41:33the
41:37coelacanth
41:37moves
41:38unlike
41:39any other
41:39fish
41:40of this
41:40size
41:40its
41:42oil
41:42filled
41:43body
41:43allows
41:44it
41:44to
41:44maintain
41:44neutral
41:45buoyancy
41:45and
41:46float
41:46in
41:47any
41:47position
41:47six
41:50fins
41:50are
41:51almost
41:51constantly
41:51in
41:52motion
41:52like
41:53oars
41:53in
41:54the
41:54water
41:54upper
41:55and
41:56lower
41:56fins
41:56toward
41:56the
41:57rear
41:57of
41:57the
41:57creature
41:57plus
41:58two
41:59pairs
41:59of
41:59limb
41:59like
42:00fins
42:00front
42:01and
42:01center
42:01and
42:03there
42:03was
42:03something
42:04surprising
42:04about
42:05the
42:05way
42:05these
42:06limb
42:06like
42:06fins
42:07moved
42:07although
42:09the
42:10coelacanth
42:10was not
42:11using
42:11them
42:11to
42:12crawl
42:12on
42:12the
42:12bottom
42:13to
42:13the
42:14expert
42:14eye
42:14their
42:15motion
42:15hinted
42:16at
42:16walking
42:17walking
42:22like
42:23we
42:23do
42:24according
42:26to
42:26Susan
42:26Jewett
42:27the
42:27fish
42:27collection
42:28manager
42:28at the
42:29Smithsonian
42:29National
42:30Museum
42:30of Natural
42:31History
42:31and an
42:33international
42:33expert
42:34in
42:34coelacanth
42:35biology
42:36it's got
42:37paired
42:38pectoral
42:38fins
42:39and
42:40paired
42:40pelvic
42:41fins
42:41these
42:42are
42:42particularly
42:43interesting
42:43because
42:44this
42:45fish
42:46has
42:46what's
42:46called
42:46a
42:47tetrapod
42:47form
42:48of
42:48swimming
42:49we
42:50being
42:51tetrapods
42:52have all
42:52learned
42:53that
42:53when we
42:54walk
42:54we move
42:55the right
42:55arm
42:55forward
42:56in
42:56synchrony
42:57with
42:57the
42:57left
42:57leg
42:58well
42:58the
42:58fish
42:58sort
42:59of
42:59swims
42:59like
42:59that
43:00with
43:00that
43:00right
43:01pectoral
43:01and
43:01the
43:01left
43:02pelvic
43:02going
43:03in
43:03synchrony
43:04with
43:04one
43:04another
43:05very
43:07interesting
43:08characteristics
43:08which again
43:09is one
43:09of very
43:10many
43:11characteristics
43:11that place
43:12it in
43:12that
43:12evolutionary
43:13line
43:14towards
43:14higher
43:15vertebrates
43:15if
43:20the
43:20coelacanth
43:21swims
43:21like
43:22a
43:22land
43:22animal
43:23walks
43:23does
43:24that
43:24too
43:25suggest
43:25it's
43:26our
43:26closest
43:26living
43:27relative
43:27among
43:27the
43:28fishes
43:28to
43:30this
43:31day
43:31the
43:31evidence
43:32is
43:32inconclusive
43:33until
43:34recently
43:35most
43:35researchers
43:36put
43:36coelacanths
43:37nearest
43:37to
43:38tetrapods
43:38on
43:39an
43:39evolutionary
43:39tree
43:40but
43:41now
43:41a
43:42group
43:42known
43:42as
43:42lung
43:43fish
43:43is
43:43thought
43:44to
43:44be
43:44an
43:44even
43:44closer
43:45ancestor
43:45based
43:46on
43:46new
43:46DNA
43:47evidence
43:48we
43:50may
43:50never
43:51know
43:51for
43:51certain
43:52which
43:52group
43:53of
43:53fishes
43:53contains
43:54our
43:54closest
43:54living
43:55relative
43:55still
43:56the
43:57coelacanth
43:58continues
43:58to
43:58surprise
43:59science
43:59at
44:00every
44:00turn
44:016,000
44:06miles
44:06from
44:06the
44:06Camoros
44:07on
44:07the
44:08other
44:08side
44:08of
44:08the
44:08Indian
44:09Ocean
44:09in
44:09Indonesia
44:10the
44:11sudden
44:11discovery
44:12of
44:12a
44:12coelacanth
44:13would
44:13disrupt
44:14the
44:14lives
44:15of
44:15two
44:15young
44:15scientists
44:16an
44:17uncanny
44:18echo
44:18of
44:19the
44:19events
44:19in
44:19South
44:19Africa
44:20some
44:2060
44:21years
44:21before
44:22Mark
44:25Erdman
44:25a marine
44:26biologist
44:27studying
44:28coral
44:28shrimp
44:28and
44:29Arnaz
44:30Meta
44:30a naturalist
44:31had just
44:32started a
44:32life
44:33together
44:33as
44:33husband
44:34and
44:34wife
44:34here
44:35in
44:35Indonesia
44:35when
44:36the
44:36coelacanth
44:37made
44:37its
44:37unexpected
44:38appearance
44:39it all
44:42began
44:43in the
44:43local
44:43fish
44:44market
44:44when
44:45Mark
44:45and
44:45Arnaz
44:46stepping
44:46out
44:46of
44:46a
44:46taxi
44:47spotted
44:47a
44:48strange
44:48looking
44:49fish
44:49on
44:49a
44:50fish
44:50cart
44:50I
44:51went
44:52over
44:52to
44:52the
44:52cart
44:53and
44:54I
44:54stared
44:54at
44:54this
44:54fish
44:55thinking
44:55it
44:56was
44:56a
44:56grouper
44:56at
44:57first
44:57but
44:57then
44:57the
44:57head
44:57was
44:58all
44:58wrong
44:58and
44:58everything
44:59was
44:59wrong
44:59about
45:00it
45:00and
45:00then
45:00I
45:01called
45:01Mark
45:01over
45:01and
45:02our
45:02other
45:02two
45:03friends
45:03they
45:03came
45:03and
45:03looked
45:04at
45:04it
45:04and
45:04Mark
45:04sort of
45:06in disbelief
45:06said it
45:06was a
45:07coelacanth
45:07it just
45:09seemed
45:09really
45:10kind of
45:11incredulous
45:12that we
45:12could
45:13step out
45:13of a
45:14taxi
45:14in a
45:14city
45:15of
45:15over
45:15half
45:15a
45:15million
45:16people
45:16and
45:17see
45:17something
45:17that
45:17was
45:18really
45:18a
45:18big
45:18deal
45:18go
45:19wheeling
45:19by
45:19on a
45:19fish
45:19cart
45:20they
45:22took
45:22a
45:22photograph
45:22but
45:23did
45:23not
45:23purchase
45:24the
45:24fish
45:24thinking
45:25Indonesian
45:26coelacanths
45:26were already
45:27well known
45:28to science
45:29but
45:30they
45:30soon
45:31learned
45:31the
45:31uniqueness
45:32of
45:32their
45:32sighting
45:32no
45:34scientist
45:34had
45:34ever
45:35found
45:35a
45:35coelacanth
45:36except
45:36near
45:37South
45:37Africa
45:37and
45:38the
45:38Comoros
45:38Islands
45:39Mark
45:42and
45:42Arnaz
45:42quickly
45:43embarked
45:43on a
45:44quest
45:44to
45:44find
45:44a
45:45second
45:45specimen
45:45like
45:47J.L.B.
45:48Smith
45:48before them
45:49they
45:49enlisted
45:50the aid
45:50of local
45:50fishermen
45:51a
45:52new
45:53hunt
45:53was
45:53on
45:53for
45:54the
45:54elusive
45:54coelacanth
45:55as
45:58in the
45:58Comoros
45:59this
45:59fish
46:00was
46:00known
46:00locally
46:01fishermen
46:02called
46:03it
46:03Raja
46:04Lout
46:04king
46:05of
46:05the
46:05sea
46:06Mark
46:07wanted
46:07to
46:08make
46:08sure
46:08that
46:09if
46:10one
46:10was
46:10captured
46:10again
46:11by
46:11these
46:11fishermen
46:12that
46:12he
46:13would
46:13be
46:13able
46:13to
46:13get
46:14it
46:14so
46:14he
46:14offered
46:14a
46:15very
46:15modest
46:15reward
46:16rather
46:17I
46:17think
46:17it
46:17was
46:18perhaps
46:18double
46:19the
46:19market
46:19price
46:20and
46:20it
46:20it's
46:20not
46:20a
46:21good
46:21eating
46:21fish
46:21so
46:22the
46:22market
46:22price
46:22couldn't
46:23have
46:23been
46:23very
46:23high
46:24but
46:25it
46:25was
46:25enough
46:25to
46:25entice
46:26the
46:26fishermen
46:26to
46:27bring
46:27it
46:27to
46:27him
46:28when
46:28they
46:28caught
46:28it
46:29and
46:29that's
46:29exactly
46:29what
46:30happened
46:30then
46:36ten
46:36months
46:37after
46:37the
46:37initial
46:37sighting
46:38Mark
46:39and
46:39Arnaz
46:39had
46:40a
46:40visit
46:40and
46:42my
46:42boatman
46:43showed
46:43up
46:43and
46:44he
46:44burst
46:45out
46:45come
46:47quick
46:48there's
46:48a
46:48coelacanth
46:49on the
46:49beach
46:49we
46:50rushed
46:51down
46:51the
46:51stairs
46:51Arnaz
46:52grabbed
46:52the
46:52video
46:52camera
46:53and
46:53we
46:54went
46:54down
46:54to
46:54see
46:54if
46:55this
46:55was
46:55indeed
46:56the
46:57fish
46:57like
47:03all
47:03of its
47:04predecessors
47:04the
47:05creature
47:05soon
47:06found
47:06life
47:06at
47:07the
47:07surface
47:07impossible
47:08but
47:12before
47:12the
47:13great
47:13fish
47:13died
47:14the
47:14couple
47:14took
47:15it
47:15out
47:15to
47:15deeper
47:15water
47:16to
47:17get
47:17photographs
47:17in a
47:18more
47:18natural
47:18setting
47:19Arnaz
47:23even
47:23had a
47:24few
47:24moments
47:24to
47:25swim
47:25alongside
47:26the
47:29fish
47:29had
47:29been
47:29caught
47:29several
47:30hours
47:30earlier
47:31and
47:31it
47:31was
47:31really
47:31down
47:32to
47:32its
47:32final
47:32hour
47:33during
47:35that
47:35time
47:35her
47:36fins
47:36were
47:36still
47:36moving
47:37still
47:37flouncing
47:38and
47:38then
47:38her
47:38dorsal
47:39fin
47:39would
47:39raise
47:40and
47:40then
47:40once
47:40in
47:40a
47:40while
47:41she
47:41would
47:41take
47:41a
47:41big
47:41gulp
47:42of
47:42water
47:42and
47:43she
47:43was
47:43extremely
47:44calm
47:45in
47:46her
47:46inevitable
47:47demise
47:48I
47:51couldn't
47:51get over
47:52how
47:52beautiful
47:52her
47:53scales
47:53were
47:53there
47:54are
47:54these
47:55you
47:56know
47:56these
47:56scales
47:56that
47:57were
47:57speckled
47:57with
47:57these
47:58gold
47:58flags
47:59and
48:00it
48:01was
48:01like
48:01it
48:01was
48:02like
48:02a
48:02slow
48:02dance
48:03it's
48:06certainly
48:06sad
48:06to watch
48:07that
48:07majestic
48:07beast
48:08die
48:08so
48:09slowly
48:09when
48:21DNA
48:21samples
48:21of the
48:22Indonesian
48:22coelacanth
48:23were
48:23sequenced
48:24they
48:25suggested
48:25that
48:25this
48:26was
48:26a
48:26new
48:26species
48:27and
48:28dissuaded
48:28scientists
48:29from
48:29the
48:30idea
48:30that
48:30the
48:30Indonesian
48:31fish
48:31was
48:32a
48:32stray
48:32in
48:34fact
48:34from
48:35the
48:35DNA
48:35analysis
48:36it
48:36seems
48:36that
48:37the
48:37two
48:37populations
48:38were
48:38separated
48:38many
48:39millions
48:39of
48:40years
48:40ago
48:40one
48:46once
48:46again
48:46the
48:46mysterious
48:47fossil
48:47fish
48:48surprised
48:49scientists
48:50around
48:50the
48:50world
48:51the
48:54indonesian
48:54discovery
48:55upset
48:55the
48:56whole
48:56apple
48:56cot
48:56science
48:58was
48:58all
48:58nice
48:59and
48:59happy
48:59they
48:59got
49:00these
49:00little
49:00enclaves
49:02in the
49:02camors
49:02all sorted
49:03out
49:03and that
49:04anything
49:04that was
49:04outside
49:05that
49:05was
49:05a
49:05stray
49:05now all of a
49:07sudden
49:0710,000 kilometers
49:08away
49:09right across the
49:09other side of the
49:10Indian Ocean
49:10we have another
49:11colony of
49:12coelacans
49:12and it's not
49:13just
49:13one or two
49:14it's not
49:15strays
49:15it's a
49:16colony
49:16they are
49:16known
49:17to the
49:17Indonesian
49:18fishermen
49:18which
49:19suggests
49:20to me
49:20that
49:20they're
49:22actually
49:22far more
49:22widespread
49:23than
49:23we think
49:24the fact
49:25that
49:25we could
49:26find
49:27this
49:27animal
49:27in a
49:28place
49:28that's
49:28relatively
49:29well
49:29known
49:29to
49:30ichthyologists
49:30it would
49:31not
49:31surprise
49:32me
49:32in the
49:32least
49:33if
49:34over
49:34the
49:34next
49:3550
49:35or
49:35100
49:35years
49:36that
49:36it
49:36is
49:36revealed
49:37the
49:37coelacanth
49:38actually
49:38exists
49:39pretty
49:39much
49:40in
49:40one
49:40continuous
49:41population
49:42from
49:42the
49:42western
49:42Indian
49:43ocean
49:43all
49:43the
49:44way
49:44up
49:44to
49:44Indonesia
49:45J.L.B.
50:01Smith
50:01didn't
50:02live
50:02to
50:02hear
50:03the
50:03story
50:03of
50:03the
50:04Indonesian
50:04coelacanth
50:05in
50:081968
50:09after
50:10years
50:10of
50:11ill
50:11health
50:11and
50:11in
50:12constant
50:12pain
50:12Smith
50:13took
50:14his
50:14own
50:14life
50:15he
50:16was
50:1670
50:17years
50:17old
50:18marjorie
50:24courtney
50:25latimer
50:25celebrated
50:26her
50:2693rd
50:27birthday
50:27in
50:28February
50:282000
50:29she
50:37she
50:37was
50:37the
50:37first
50:38in
50:38a
50:38long
50:38chain
50:38of
50:39people
50:39whose
50:40lives
50:40were
50:40touched
50:41by
50:41this
50:41ancient
50:42fish
50:42I
50:47think
50:48that
50:48all my
50:49life
50:49I
50:50was
50:51called
50:51to
50:52do
50:52what
50:52I
50:52did
50:53in
50:53my
50:53life
50:53and
50:54it
50:55all
50:56came
50:57as a
50:58wonderful
50:58kind
50:58of
50:59circle
50:59of
51:00events
51:00finding
51:01this
51:02wonderful
51:02fish
51:03there's
51:06something
51:06about
51:07the
51:07ancient
51:08nature
51:09of this
51:09fish
51:10and the
51:11story
51:11that
51:12goes
51:12with it
51:12that
51:12intrigues
51:13people
51:14so much
51:14and pulls
51:15them
51:15in
51:16it's
51:16just
51:16something
51:17magical
51:17about
51:18it
51:18I
51:20first
51:21saw
51:21the
51:21coelacan
51:21probably
51:22in
51:22about
51:231956
51:23the
51:25original
51:25mounted
51:26specimen
51:26in
51:26the
51:27East
51:27London
51:27Museum
51:27to
51:28me
51:29it
51:29was
51:29this
51:29fantastic
51:30creature
51:30from
51:31the
51:31past
51:31which
51:32gave
51:32us
51:32a
51:32window
51:33into
51:33the
51:33past
51:34and
51:34made
51:34us
51:34kind
51:35of
51:35realize
51:36life
51:37began
51:37in
51:37the
51:37sea
51:38from
51:38the
51:39sea
51:39the
51:39vertebrate
51:40the
51:40backbone
51:41animals
51:41crawled
51:42out
51:42onto
51:42land
51:43and
51:43that's
51:44where
51:44the
51:44evolution
51:44of
51:45terrestrial
51:45vertebrate
51:46started
51:46the
51:50final
51:50riddle
51:51the
51:52coelacanth
51:52may never
51:53have
51:53stepped
51:53onto
51:54land
51:54but
51:55if
51:55this
51:55living
51:56fossil
51:56was
51:56able
51:57to
51:57avoid
51:57extinction
51:58and
51:59detection
51:59for
52:00so
52:00many
52:00millions
52:01of
52:01years
52:02what
52:03other
52:03strange
52:04and
52:04wonderful
52:04creatures
52:05may
52:05also
52:06be
52:06down
52:06there
52:07it
52:07really
52:08does
52:08say
52:08something
52:08about
52:09how
52:09little
52:09we
52:09know
52:10about
52:10the
52:10oceans
52:10very
52:11definitely
52:12that
52:12goes
52:12a long
52:12way
52:13in
52:13explaining
52:13the
52:14mystique
52:14of the
52:14coelacanth
52:15and
52:15its
52:16enrapturing
52:17effect
52:18on the
52:18public
52:19because that's
52:22kind of a weird
52:23thing if you really
52:23think about it
52:24just a big ugly
52:25old fish
52:25but there is
52:26something more
52:27to it
52:27and
52:28it's that
52:29quality of the
52:31unknown
52:32of the deep
52:33so
52:35for
52:36for over
52:36half a
52:37century
52:37this
52:38creature
52:38has
52:38attracted
52:39the
52:39scrutiny
52:40of
52:40scientists
52:40worldwide
52:41yet
52:43so many
52:43questions
52:44remain
52:44unanswered
52:47do
52:48coelacanths
52:48live in
52:49all the
52:49world's
52:50oceans
52:50how
52:51large
52:51are
52:51their
52:52populations
52:52how
52:53long
52:53do
52:53they
52:54live
52:54over
52:56the
52:56next
52:57half
52:57century
52:57scientists
52:58will
52:59continue
52:59to
52:59explore
53:00these
53:00secrets
53:01and
53:02perhaps
53:02more
53:03lives
53:04will
53:04be
53:04touched
53:04by
53:05this
53:05mysterious
53:06survivor
53:07the
53:17coelacanth
53:18is the
53:18most famous
53:19living
53:19fossil
53:19in the
53:20sea
53:20but there
53:21are
53:21others
53:22and they
53:22give us
53:23a window
53:23into
53:24prehistoric
53:24worlds
53:25see them
53:26for yourself
53:27on
53:27NOVA's
53:27website
53:28at
53:28pbs.org
53:29or
53:30america
53:30online
53:31keyword
53:31pbs
53:32to order
53:51this show
53:51or any
53:52other
53:53NOVA
53:53program
53:53for
53:54$19.95
53:55plus
53:55shipping
53:55and
53:56handling
53:56call
53:57wgbh
53:58boston
53:59video
53:59at
53:591-800-255-9424
54:03NOVA
54:16is a
54:16production
54:17of
54:17wgbh
54:18boston
54:18corporate
54:20funding for
54:20NOVA
54:20is provided
54:21by
54:21sprint
54:22additional
54:24funding
54:24is provided
54:25by
54:25the park
54:26foundation
54:27dedicated
54:27to
54:28education
54:28and
54:29quality
54:29television
54:30and
54:32by
54:32the
54:33corporation
54:33for
54:34public
54:34broadcasting
54:35and
54:35by
54:35contributions
54:36to
54:36your
54:37PBS
54:37station
54:37from
54:38viewers
54:38like
54:39you
54:39thank
54:39you
54:40and
54:40and
54:41you
54:42and
54:43you
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