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The longest - living animals are fit out with traits to hold off , and sometimes even stop or reverse , the aging process . While humans may have an"absolute terminal point " of 150 years , this is just a blink of an heart compared with the centuries and millennia that some animals last through .
The true historic period champions live in water , often at great depths where stipulation are stable and consistent . Scientists ca n’t immortalise the giving birth and death of every member of a species , so they typically estimate maximum life duad based on what is get laid about a species ' biology . From honest-to-goodness to old , here are 13 of the longest - living animal in the world today .
The immortal jellyfish Turritopsis dohrnii can potentially live forwever, turning back into polyps if damaged or starving.
13. Saltwater crocodiles: 120+ years old
If they live on to adulthood , saltwater crocodiles ( Crocodylus porosus ) normally go for over 70 old age . Accurate information on their maximum lifespan is largely wanting . However , records of two specially long - live crocs suggest they can live to over 120 age .
Cassius Longinus — the earth ’s largest captive crocodile — is believe to be up to 120 years one-time . He was enchant in 1984 on a cattle cattle farm southwest of Darwin , Australia , and has been continue at the Marineland Crocodile Park on Green Island ever since . He was 16 foot , 10 inches ( 5.13 metre ) at the meter , leading experts to estimate he was between 30 and 80 years old . As of 2023 , he was retrieve to be up to 120 year sure-enough . Cassius Longinus is also still arise , providing scientists with " serious knowledge on seniority , " Toody Scott , a crocodile custodian who looks after Cassiuspreviously told Live Science .
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The maximum longevity of saltwater crocodiles is unknown, but it appears they can live to over 120 years.
Another long - lived brine crocodile is Mr Freshie , who lived between 120 and 140 years , expert reckon . The crocodile was caught in North Queensland by Steve Irwin and his Padre in 1970 and move to the Australia Zoo , where he lived for 40 age until his destruction in 2010 . He was estimated to have been around 100 when he was captured , concord to the Courier Mail .
12. Seychelles giant tortoise: 190+ years old
tortoise are famed for their longevity . The oldest surviving land beast is a 190 - year - old Seychelles jumbo tortoise ( Aldabrachelys gigantea hololissa ) named Jonathan . The tortoise endure on the island of St. Helena in the South Atlantic Ocean after having been brought there by citizenry from the Seychelles in 1882.Jonathan ’s ageis an appraisal , but a photo of him have between 1882 and 1886 usher he was to the full mature — at least 50 years old — in the recent nineteenth century , Live Science antecedently reported .
On Jan. 12 , 2022,Guinness World Recordsannounced that Jonathan was the oldest tortoise ever . " He is a local icon , emblematical of persistence in the cheek of change , " Joe Hollins , Jonathan ’s veterinarian , assure Guinness World Records at the time .
jumbo tortoises need to live a foresightful sentence so they can multiply repeatedly and produce plenty of egg , because many of their eggs are eaten by predators . Their ability to cursorily kill off damage cells that normally deteriorate with age may helptortoises live on so long , Live Science previously reported .
A 2017 photo of Jonathan, a Seychelles giant tortoise thought to be the oldest reptile living on Earth. Jonathan lives on Saint Helena, a British Overseas Territory in the South Atlantic Ocean.
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11. Red sea urchins: 200 years old
scarlet sea urchins ( Strongylocentrotus franciscanus ) are small , round invertebrates spread over in pricker . They live in shallow coastal waters off North America from California to Alaska , where they feed on marine plants , accord toOregon State University . Researchers used to assume that red sea urchins grew quickly and had modest life spans of up to about 10 long time , but as scientists canvas the metal money in more detail , they realize these urchin keep to originate very lento and , in some locating , will outlast for centuries if they can void predatory animal , disease and fishers .
The red sea urchin found off Washington and Alaska belike live more than 100 years , and the longest - living mortal in British Columbia , Canada , may be around 200 years onetime , allot to a 2003 study published in the journalFishery Bulletin .
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(Purple sea urchins (Strongylocentrotus purpuratus) and red sea urchins (Mesocentrotus franciscanus). in Van Damme State Park, California.
10. Bowhead whale: potentially 200+ years old
Bowhead whales ( Balaena mysticetus ) are the long - dwell mammals . TheArcticand sub - gelid whale ' exact life span is obscure , but rock harpoon tips found in some harvested person testify that they well live over 100 years and may hold up more than 200 years , according to theNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration(NOAA ) .
Thewhales have mutationsin a cistron called ERCC1 , which is involved with indemnify damage DNA , that may assist protect the whales from cancer , a likely grounds of death . moreover , another gene , call off PCNA , has a section that has been duplicated . This factor is involved in electric cell growth and fix , and the duplication could slow down aging , Live Science previously reported .
Studying these long - lived whales could provide hints about how to protract human life story . " My own vista is that different long - lived species use different tricks to evolve long life spans , and there are n’t many genes in common,“João Pedro deMagalhães , an expert in aging science at the University of Birmingham in the U.K. , previously severalize Live Science . " But you do get some common nerve pathway , so there may be common radiation diagram . "
A bowhead whale breaches in waters near the Qikiqtaaluk Region in Nunavut, northern Canada.
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9. Rougheye rockfish: 200+ years old
The rougheye rockfish ( Sebastes aleutianus ) is one of the longest - living fish , with a maximal life sentence span of at least 205 years , according to theWashington Department of Fish and Wildlife . These pink or brownish Pisces live in the Pacific Ocean from California to Japan . They grow up to 38 inches ( 97 centimeters ) long and eat other animals , such as shrimp and smaller fish , grant to theCommittee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada , an independent advisory venire that valuate the statuses of species menace with experimental extinction in Canada .
A 2021 report bring out in the journalSciencelooked at the genomes of 88 rockfish coinage , let in rougheye rockfish , and found genic vocation batting order for longevity , including desoxyribonucleic acid resort pathways that may help oneself ward off cancers . A retentive life story span allow the Roccus saxatilis to arise larger and produce more unseasoned .
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A rougheye rockfish (Sebastes aleutianus), also known as the blackthroat rockfish or the blacktip rockfish.
8. Freshwater pearl mussel: 250+ years old
Freshwater bone mussel ( Margaritifera margaritifera ) are bivalves that filter particles of food from the water . They last mainly in rivers and streams and can be found in Europe and North America . The oldest known freshwater pearl mussel was 280 years old , accord to theWorld Wildlife Fund for Nature . These invertebrate have prospicient life spans thanks to their dispirited metabolism .
Freshwater pearl mussel are an endangered species . Their population is slump due to a variety of human - related factor , including terms and changes to the river habitats they depend on , according to theInternational Union for Conservation of Nature .
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Freshwater mussels from theMargaritiferagenus.
7. Greenland shark: 272+ years old
Greenland sharks(Somniosus microcephalus ) experience deep in the Arctic and North Atlantic oceans . They can grow to be 24 foot ( 7.3 meter ) long and have a diet that includes a variety of other brute , include Pisces and nautical mammals such as seals , according to theSt . Lawrence Shark Observatoryin Canada .
A 2016 sketch of Greenland shark eye tissue paper , bring out in the journalScience , count on that these shark can have a maximum living span of at least 272 old age . The biggest shark in that study was estimated to be about 392 year one-time , and the researcher suggest that the sharks could have been up to512 days previous , Live Science antecedently report . The age estimates amount with a point of uncertainty , but even the lowest estimation of 272 class still make these sharks the prospicient - subsist vertebrates onEarth , Julius Nielsen , a research worker at Greenland Institute of Natural Resources , previously told Live Science .
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A Greenland shark swimming in the St. Lawrence River estuary in Canada.
6. Tubeworm: 300+ years old
Tube worms are invertebrates that go on the sea floor . Bacteria in their tube-shaped structure create sugars from chemicals , which they take up as nutrient , according to the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution’sDive and Discoverwebsite . Some tube worm populate around hydrothermal vents , but the farseeing - go species are observe in colder , more stable environment called cold seeps , where chemicals honk from cracks or fissures in the seafloor , grant to theExploring Our Fluid Earthwebsite hosted by the University of Hawaii .
A 2017 subject write in the journalThe Science of Naturefound thatEscarpia laminata , a cold - seep species of tube worm in the Gulf of Mexico , on a regular basis lives up to 200 years , and some specimens survive for more than 300 age . Tube worms have a dull metabolism and few natural scourge ( such as predators ) , which has helped these creatures evolve such long life span .
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Tubeworms on the ocean floor.
5. Ocean quahog clam: 500+ years old
Ocean quahog clams ( Arctica islandica ) inhabit the North Atlantic Ocean . This saltwater species can live even longer than the other lamellibranch on this lean , the freshwater pearl mussel . One ocean quahog clam institute off the coast of Iceland in 2006 was 507 years old , according toNational Museum Walesin the U.K. The ancient one dollar bill was nicknamed Ming because it was born in 1499 , when the Ming dynasty ruledChina(from 1368 to 1644 ) .
" In the colder waters surround Iceland the Ocean Quahog has a slow metamorphosis and so grows slowly and may even live for longer than 507 — scientist just have n’t found an older one yet!“Anna Holmes , curator of spineless biodiversity ( pelecypod ) at National Museum Wales , write on the museum’swebsitein 2020 .
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A quahog clam on a beach in Cape Cod in Massachusetts.
4. Black coral: 4,000+ years old
Coralslook like coloured , underwater rock’n’roll and plants , but they are actually made up of the exoskeleton of invertebrate called polyp . These polyp continually procreate and supercede themselves by make a genetically monovular copy , which over time do the coral exoskeleton structure to grow big and self-aggrandizing . Corals are therefore made up of multiple indistinguishable organisms rather than being a single being , so a coral ’s lifespan span is more of a team exploit .
thick - water supply black corals are among the longest - living precious coral . Black coral specimens found off the seacoast of Hawaii have beenradiocarbon dated to be 4,265 eld old , Live Science antecedently cover .
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Black corals on the shipwreck of the ship Hardeep near Thailand.
3. Glass sponge: 10,000+ years old
sponger are made up of colonies of animals , similar to corals , and can also live for thousands of years . Glass parazoan are among the long - survive sponges on Earth . Members of this group are often constitute in the deep sea and have skeletons that resemble glass , hence their name , according toNOAA .
A 2012 study published in the journalChemical Geologyestimated that a methamphetamine hydrochloride parasite belong to to the speciesMonorhaphis chuniwas about 11,000 years one-time . Other sponge species may be able to live even longer .
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An illustration of sponges, including Monorhaphis chuni (labeled 2 on the left).
2. Turritopsis dohrnii: potentially immortal
Turritopsis dohrniiis called the immortal jellyfish because it can potentially live forever and a day . Jellyfish start life as larvae before show themselves on the seafloor and transform into polyps . These polypus then produce innocent - swimming Medusa , or jellyfish . MatureT. dohrniiare special in that they can turn back into polyps if they are physically damaged or lust , according to theAmerican Museum of Natural History , and then later on return to their jellyfish province .
The jellyfish , which are native to the Mediterranean Sea , can restate this feat of reversing their life cycle multiple time and therefore may never die of old age under the ripe conditions , according to theNatural History Museumin London . T. dohrniiare tiny — less than 0.2 column inch ( 4.5 millimeter ) across — and are eat by other animals , such as Pisces , or may die by other way , thus forbid them from actually achieve immortality .
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ATurritopsis dohrnii, or immortal jellyfish
1. Hydra: potentially immortal
Hydrais a grouping of minuscule invertebrate with balmy bodies that slightly resemble jellyfish and , likeT. dohrnii , have the potency to live forever and a day . These invertebrates are largely made up ofstem mobile phone , which continually revitalize through duplication or cloning , so these animals do n’t deteriorate as they get older . They do die under natural conditions because of threats such as predators and disease , but without these external dangers , they could keep regenerating forever .
" They do n’t seem to get on , so potentially , they areimmortal,“Daniel Martínez , a biology professor at Pomona College in Claremont , California , who fall upon the hydra ’s deficiency of aging , previously told Live Science .
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Hydras can regenerate lost body parts — even their heads.
in the beginning print on Live Science Aug. 16 , 2021 , and republished Oct. 28 , 2022 .
