Australian lungfish 'Methuselah' believed to be oldest living aquarium fish at 90-yrs-old

Methuselah, the Australian lungfish that likes to eat fresh figs is believed to be the oldest living aquarium fish in the world. Methuselah is 4-foot-long and weighs around 40-pound and was brought to the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco from Australia in 1938, according to AP. The fish rests and swims in its tank in San Francisco and gets belly rubs. 

Even though the exact age of Methuselah is not known, however, the biologists at the California Academy of Sciences believe Methuselah to be about 90 years old. A few years back, the oldest Australian lungfish named Granddad lived at the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago and it died in 2017 at the age of 95. Australian lungfish has lungs and gills and is believed to be the link of evolution between fish and the amphibian. The Australian lungfish's name Methuselah comes from the Bible. In the Bible, Methuselah was Noah's grandfather, and he lived for 969 years, reported ABC7News. In addition to Methuselah, the California Academy of Sciences has two other Australian lungfish who are believed to be in their 40s or 50s. 

Biologists believe the fish to be female and oldest 

Allan Jan, senior biologist at the California Academy of Sciences and fish's Keeper believed that Methuselah is the oldest. Even though Methuselah's caretakers believe the fish to be female, however, they are not sure as it is difficult to determine the species sex without a risky blood draw. For the determination of the gender of fish, the Academy has decided to send a sample of her fin to researchers in Australia. The researchers in Australia will try to determine the gender and finding about the fish's exact age. Allan Jan informed that she likes getting rubbed on her back and belly and likes to eat seasonal figs. Allan Jan has told the volunteers to consider it as the "underwater puppy" which is very gentle. Allan Jan said, “I tell my volunteers, pretend she’s an underwater puppy, very mellow, gentle, but of course if she gets spooked she will have sudden bouts of energy. But for the most part she’s just calm,” as per AP. 

Inputs from AP

Image: AP