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A Fish Caught in Time: The Search for the Coelacanth
Just before Christmas in 1938, the young woman curator of a small South African museum spotted a strange-looking fish on a trawler's deck. It was five feet long, with steel-blue scales, luminescent eyes and remarkable limb-like fins, unlike those of any fish she had ever seen. Determined to preserve her unusual find, she searched for days for a way to save it, but ended up with only the skin and a few bones.
A charismatic amateur ichthyologist, J.L.B. Smith, saw a thumbnail sketch of the fish and was thunderstruck. He recognized it as a coelacanth (pronounced see-la-kanth), a creature known from fossils dating back 400 million years and thought to have died out with the dinosaurs. With its extraordinary limbs, the coelacanth was believed to be the first fish to crawl from the sea and evolve into reptiles, mammals and eventually mankind. The discovery was immediately dubbed the "greatest scientific find of the century."
Smith devoted his life to the search for a complete specimen, a
fourteen-year odyssey that culminated in a dramatic act of international piracy. As the fame of the coelacanth spread, so did rumors and obsessions. Nations fought over it, multimillion-dollar expeditions were launched, and submarines hand-built to find it. In 1998, the rumors and the truth came together in a gripping climax, which brought the coelacanth back into the international limelight.
A Fish Caught in Time is the entrancing story of the most rare and precious fish in the world--our own great uncle forty million times removed.
220 pages, Paperback
First published February 6, 2001
37 people are currently reading
2094 people want to read
About the author
Samantha Weinberg
7 books23 followersSamantha Weinberg is the real name of the author Kate Westbrook.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 156 reviews
September 2, 2020
"I picked away the layers of slime to reveal the most beautiful fish I had ever seen," she recounts. "It was five feet long, a pale, mauvy blue with faint flecks of whitish spots; it had an iridescent silver-blue-green sheen all over. It was covered in hard scales, and it had four limb-like fins and a strange little puppy dog tail. It was such a beautiful fish-more like a big china ornament-but I didn't know what it was."
~ Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer
I really enjoyed this fascinating tale of the discovery in South Africa in 1938 of a live coelacanth (see-lo-canth), an ancient fish known from fossils but presumed until then to have died out 70 million years ago, and of the ongoing research into its morphology, natural history and place in the evolutionary tree relative to humans.
Weinberg skillfully weaves an easy introduction to the science into a compelling narrative of a cast of eccentric naturalists, mercenaries, undersea explorers, and government officials cooperating and competing to catch dead and live specimens, against the backdrop of colonialism, World War II, and civil war in South Africa, Mozambique, Madagascar, the Comoros Islands, and Indonesia.
She touches on obsession, ambition, greed, and national pride as drivers of the quest that could have resulted in a tragic and ironic modern extinction for this amazing survivor, but also describes apparently effective efforts at conserving the species, which remains little understood.
I highly recommend.
~ Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer
I really enjoyed this fascinating tale of the discovery in South Africa in 1938 of a live coelacanth (see-lo-canth), an ancient fish known from fossils but presumed until then to have died out 70 million years ago, and of the ongoing research into its morphology, natural history and place in the evolutionary tree relative to humans.
Weinberg skillfully weaves an easy introduction to the science into a compelling narrative of a cast of eccentric naturalists, mercenaries, undersea explorers, and government officials cooperating and competing to catch dead and live specimens, against the backdrop of colonialism, World War II, and civil war in South Africa, Mozambique, Madagascar, the Comoros Islands, and Indonesia.
She touches on obsession, ambition, greed, and national pride as drivers of the quest that could have resulted in a tragic and ironic modern extinction for this amazing survivor, but also describes apparently effective efforts at conserving the species, which remains little understood.
I highly recommend.
September 27, 2020
This fascinating history of the Coelacanth is beautifully written, lighthearted and fascinating. A brilliant yarn in every sense of the word, it tells the story of how the Coelacanth went from being a fossil considered to be extinct for 50-70 million years to being one of the few distinguished 'living fossils' of our time.
The story takes us back to East London, South Africa 1938 when a young museum curator, Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer went down to examine a trawler catch and found a fish that was so beautiful that the image stayed with her for the rest of her life, but also it was a fish mysteriously unidentifiable and taxonomically strange.
Throughout the book the people who see the Coelocanth, especially unexpectedly, all seem to have a moment when they realise they are seeing something unique, perhaps because it is so unlike modern fish.
I learnt about the Coelocanth of course, I am sure that anyone who studied Zoology or Marine Biology did. Even for me the very small segment of course spent on it stirred the imagination and so this book about how it was discovered, exposed to modern science and slowly revealed and the layers of of mystery were slowly peeled back was just amazing. Loved this book.
The story takes us back to East London, South Africa 1938 when a young museum curator, Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer went down to examine a trawler catch and found a fish that was so beautiful that the image stayed with her for the rest of her life, but also it was a fish mysteriously unidentifiable and taxonomically strange.
Throughout the book the people who see the Coelocanth, especially unexpectedly, all seem to have a moment when they realise they are seeing something unique, perhaps because it is so unlike modern fish.
I learnt about the Coelocanth of course, I am sure that anyone who studied Zoology or Marine Biology did. Even for me the very small segment of course spent on it stirred the imagination and so this book about how it was discovered, exposed to modern science and slowly revealed and the layers of of mystery were slowly peeled back was just amazing. Loved this book.
March 2, 2015
This is a well written book of good pace and very good explanation - and with the subject matter that was necessary, to stop it turning text-book.
In 1938 a fish was caught by a fishing boat off the coast of South Africa. The local museum curator took it from the fishermen, and despite it being Christmas time, set about trying to contact people to assist with the identification. The fish was a Coelacanth, thought long extinct.
This is the story of the curator, Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer, or JLB Smith, an amateur ichthyologist (fish scientist!) and of Mark Erdmann, a marine biologist. The story travels from South Africa to the Comoro Islands, to Mozambique to Indonesia.
In 1938 a fish was caught by a fishing boat off the coast of South Africa. The local museum curator took it from the fishermen, and despite it being Christmas time, set about trying to contact people to assist with the identification. The fish was a Coelacanth, thought long extinct.
This is the story of the curator, Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer, or JLB Smith, an amateur ichthyologist (fish scientist!) and of Mark Erdmann, a marine biologist. The story travels from South Africa to the Comoro Islands, to Mozambique to Indonesia.
May 11, 2020
Imagine seeing a dinosaur suddenly appear?! This is as close as it gets to that. A fish known only through fossils is trawled up from the depths of the sea by a fisherman in South Africa. An extinct coelacanth! He gives it to the curator of a museum who brings in a fish expert.
The internal organs of the fish were not maintained so the eccentric expert seeks out another specimen. He journeys further up the current to Comoros where he believes the species may originate. And finds some! Is the coelacanth the missing link? The species that paved the way from sea to land? All this you will need to read for yourself!
The book details all of the scientific information. It also details the international rivalry and politics involved. It is as much of a human story as it is about a remarkable animal.
The information provided is written for the average person and adds some interesting facts that would interest people who know about fish.
The end of the book provides more technical information about the fishes morphology, the fins, the scales, the eyes, the legs etc.
Also included is a list of all museums that possess a specimen on display.
I enjoyed every single page. Even though the book is sort of scientific, it has such a lovely, wistful tone about it that makes you want to seek out some favourite animals in an impossible region.
I would read this book again and wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone who has a curiosity for animals.
The internal organs of the fish were not maintained so the eccentric expert seeks out another specimen. He journeys further up the current to Comoros where he believes the species may originate. And finds some! Is the coelacanth the missing link? The species that paved the way from sea to land? All this you will need to read for yourself!
The book details all of the scientific information. It also details the international rivalry and politics involved. It is as much of a human story as it is about a remarkable animal.
The information provided is written for the average person and adds some interesting facts that would interest people who know about fish.
The end of the book provides more technical information about the fishes morphology, the fins, the scales, the eyes, the legs etc.
Also included is a list of all museums that possess a specimen on display.
I enjoyed every single page. Even though the book is sort of scientific, it has such a lovely, wistful tone about it that makes you want to seek out some favourite animals in an impossible region.
I would read this book again and wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone who has a curiosity for animals.
November 15, 2020
Who would think I would love a book about a fish? I needed a book for Comoros in my around the world reading challenge and this was the best of few options. It was fantastic. I am a scientist and veterinarian so I do love animals and biology, but this book was exciting, had interesting quirky characters, and told a remarkable story. I devoured it.
February 9, 2022
I didn't think I would enjoy this book. But never judge a book by its cover! It was fascinating. I have never heard of the coelacanth before. What a difficult word to pronounce. It's a living fossil, a fish that existed before the dinosaurs did and believed to have been extinct until they found a coelacanth in southern Africa in 1938. They actually still exist and since then another coelacanth population has been found in Indonesia. This is a fascinating story of the lives of the people who studied the coelacanth. I simply enjoyed this story for the fact that man doesn't know everything about this planet. There are actually things out there, especially at the bottom of the ocean which we have no clue about. I also enjoyed the parts of this book that saw the links between Comoros/Madagascar and Indonesia. I have always been fascinated about that. This book isn't too long and is accessible even to those without any science background. There are black and white photos scattered throughout the book, which added a nice touch. All in all, an unexpected and pleasant book.
October 29, 2011
This is what I look for in a book on a scholarly subject. The author handles the facts well, but is able to make the people involved come alive, allowing the reader to care about them. Weinberg's good writing makes the transitions from fact to biography in such a manner that you never feel disconnected from the story of the search. I found myself getting excited about the search and the trip to a far-away island to collect a specimen was almost daring-do. And amidst all of this publicity, concern for conservation, egos, and political machinations, the Coelacanth continues its fishy business, surprising us with its unusual makeup and behaviours.
The compilation of known facts about the fish found at the end of the book was a bonus, as was the video of it available on the website still being maintained by one of its enthusiastic admirers.
The compilation of known facts about the fish found at the end of the book was a bonus, as was the video of it available on the website still being maintained by one of its enthusiastic admirers.
December 26, 2018
I tried to see if this fish was featured in the Jason Mamoa-starrer film AQUAMAN but failed to find it there (some scenes were quite a blur, though). But maybe it wasn’t really there. For this is not a violent fish.
I consider this fish, the Coelacanth (pronounced: “silly cunt”), as the rock star of all the fishes in our seas and oceans. The world was shocked when a live specimen of this fish was caught in 1938, just before the outbreak of the second world war. Utter disbelief and amazement was the initial reaction of those knowledgeable in fishes who first saw it. Another 14 years passed before a second live specimen was caught, and this was even after tremendous efforts were spent catching it, with handsome rewards put up for whoever would succeed in catching another one.
(Of course, local fishermen have been catching this fish occasionally even before this but were unaware of its rarity and importance. It was only in 1938 when the same was brought to the attention of scientists and experts, and to the world in general).
But what’s so special about this fish? It is a living fossil. Before this shock of a discovery in 1938, it was known only by the fossils it had left which had been dated to be around 400 MILLION years old. How long ago is 400 million years? That was before human beings (and their precursors) ever existed, before the dinosaurs, before the early mammals, before the early amphibians. This fish was in fact among the early fishes suspected to have learned how to walk on land, then evolved into reptiles and amphibians and dinosaurs and ultimately humans, in an evolutionary process involving millions of years.
It is even very much older than another living fossil (subject of my earlier good review), the Wollemi Pine, called the “Dinosaur Tree” because prior to its discovery in a remote part of Australia it was known to have been extinct also after flourishing during the age of the dinosaurs.
This 1938 fish was said to have been caught by a deep sea trawler somewhere in the Indian Ocean, near the Comoros Islands located between the African mainland and the island of Madagascar. Several decades after, however, the world was again astounded when another live specimen was caught in the seas of Indonesia.
Any fisherman who catches another Coelacanth in a place other than Indonesia and the Comoros islands could become rich and famous. But it seems this is a fish which is not easy to find, much less catch, even though it is a large fish which can grow to as big as 6 feet and as heavy as 200 plus pounds. For not only is it rare, it also stays in underwater caves during daytime and go out only at night to hunt for food (basically just staying in one place and waiting for food (squid, small fishes, etc.) to come near it. It also does not survive in captivity. If you catch a live one and haul it up to shallow waters, it wouldn’t be able to survive the stress and will die slowly even if you set it free. No one knows how they mate but recent discoveries show that the female Coelacanth hatch her eggs inside her and give birth to baby Coelacanths.
Some other strange characteristics of this fish (aside from its appearance) are: it is edible but does not taste great; if you eat it, you most likely will have diarrhoea later; it sometimes swim vertically with its head pointed at the ocean floor; its four limb-like fins appear to be rotating while swimming; it is covered by very hard scales; and it has a strange puppy dog tail.
You can find rare footages of this fish live underwater at youtube.
I consider this fish, the Coelacanth (pronounced: “silly cunt”), as the rock star of all the fishes in our seas and oceans. The world was shocked when a live specimen of this fish was caught in 1938, just before the outbreak of the second world war. Utter disbelief and amazement was the initial reaction of those knowledgeable in fishes who first saw it. Another 14 years passed before a second live specimen was caught, and this was even after tremendous efforts were spent catching it, with handsome rewards put up for whoever would succeed in catching another one.
(Of course, local fishermen have been catching this fish occasionally even before this but were unaware of its rarity and importance. It was only in 1938 when the same was brought to the attention of scientists and experts, and to the world in general).
But what’s so special about this fish? It is a living fossil. Before this shock of a discovery in 1938, it was known only by the fossils it had left which had been dated to be around 400 MILLION years old. How long ago is 400 million years? That was before human beings (and their precursors) ever existed, before the dinosaurs, before the early mammals, before the early amphibians. This fish was in fact among the early fishes suspected to have learned how to walk on land, then evolved into reptiles and amphibians and dinosaurs and ultimately humans, in an evolutionary process involving millions of years.
It is even very much older than another living fossil (subject of my earlier good review), the Wollemi Pine, called the “Dinosaur Tree” because prior to its discovery in a remote part of Australia it was known to have been extinct also after flourishing during the age of the dinosaurs.
This 1938 fish was said to have been caught by a deep sea trawler somewhere in the Indian Ocean, near the Comoros Islands located between the African mainland and the island of Madagascar. Several decades after, however, the world was again astounded when another live specimen was caught in the seas of Indonesia.
Any fisherman who catches another Coelacanth in a place other than Indonesia and the Comoros islands could become rich and famous. But it seems this is a fish which is not easy to find, much less catch, even though it is a large fish which can grow to as big as 6 feet and as heavy as 200 plus pounds. For not only is it rare, it also stays in underwater caves during daytime and go out only at night to hunt for food (basically just staying in one place and waiting for food (squid, small fishes, etc.) to come near it. It also does not survive in captivity. If you catch a live one and haul it up to shallow waters, it wouldn’t be able to survive the stress and will die slowly even if you set it free. No one knows how they mate but recent discoveries show that the female Coelacanth hatch her eggs inside her and give birth to baby Coelacanths.
Some other strange characteristics of this fish (aside from its appearance) are: it is edible but does not taste great; if you eat it, you most likely will have diarrhoea later; it sometimes swim vertically with its head pointed at the ocean floor; its four limb-like fins appear to be rotating while swimming; it is covered by very hard scales; and it has a strange puppy dog tail.
You can find rare footages of this fish live underwater at youtube.
October 3, 2011
This is not really about the coelacanth intself, but is, instead, about the men and women involved in first realizing what it was and what it meant when one was caught by fishermen in 1938, and about the quest to find out where they live and how they function. I suppose you could call it a modern history of the coelacanth, though a fairly shallow one. I would have liked more back story--information about the first coelacanth fossils found and what people thought about them when they were discovered, etc., but I guess there are other books for that. As it is, it's an interesting story, just...very light on details.
March 30, 2016
This was my second time with this one. The first time was several years ago when it was a new-ish release, long before kids. This time it was a morning read-aloud selection. K gave it a 3, L gave it a 5...no surprise there, she loves the true stories of weird and wonderful things. It doesn't get too much weirder than the coelacanth. This is the story of the odd 'living fossil' and how it was identified by the scientific community. In particular, I love the story of Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer, the head of a very small South African museum, who happened to recognize the first specimen as a very special fish in 1938. The book feels only a little out of date now, since it was written before the sequencing of the coelacanth genome in 2013, but little matter. We've got the Google, and coelacanth science moves about as slowly as the fish reproduces...that is to say, really very slowly.
June 1, 2018
The story of the coelacanth fish. I didn’t know what this was but was completely hooked by the story (so to speak, ha ha). Thought to be extinct, fossils date back 400m years. It may be humans’ ancestor in the evolutionary chain. One was found in the Comoros islands in 1938, to huge excitement & a quest ever since. Loved the stories of the people involved, especially the amazing Marjorie Courtney-Latimer who saw its significance in 1938. Simon Winchester fans will enjoy.
I read this for #passportlitsy for ‘Comoros’. It gave me a good sense of life in the Comoros islands, and was a great read as well. All in all, a winner!
I read this for #passportlitsy for ‘Comoros’. It gave me a good sense of life in the Comoros islands, and was a great read as well. All in all, a winner!
June 23, 2022
Have you ever had a strange urge to learn more about fish? No? Give this a try and it just might change your mind. The Coelacanth (see-lo-canth) is an ancient fish that nobody knew still existed until late 1930’s. Since then the world of science had tried to hunt it down after which they tried to preserve it. And after all that..there is still so much we don’t know about it.
Fun book! Give it a read 🙂
I rate it 🐟 🐟 🐟 🐟 out of 5
Fun book! Give it a read 🙂
I rate it 🐟 🐟 🐟 🐟 out of 5
March 10, 2021
As you would expect, you get some science and history about coelacanths but also some interesting politics with scientists and politicians from different countries squabbling for ownership and bragging rights over the rediscovery and study of this interesting fish.
Poor creatures, while I value the scientific advances from finding them, you can't help think it would have been better for them to remain hidden in the deep!
Poor creatures, while I value the scientific advances from finding them, you can't help think it would have been better for them to remain hidden in the deep!
March 3, 2023
Read around the world project - Comoros
This was great! It covers a fish species previously thought extinct until the discovery of a living specimen in the late 1930s updated its presumed lost status. The coelacanth - try saying that a few times - is important because of its lobe-finned physiology, a prequel characteristic to the first fish that made the transition from sea to land, i.e. our own ancestors.
One of the first nonfiction books I ever gave 5 stars to was Your Inner Fish: a Journey into the 3.5-Billion-Year History of the Human Body, which follows the fossil discovery of an evolutionary cousin to the coelacanth, also lying at the intersection of aquatic and terrestrial life. This was a great companion piece, covering less of the actual hard science as Your Inner Fish, but richer in its modern history and the random/eclectic cast of characters.
I found the addition of pictures was really helpful. My only critique is that I wish more info was given on the coelacanth’s fossil record, but overall I really enjoyed this and would totally recommend.
4.5/5 stars
This was great! It covers a fish species previously thought extinct until the discovery of a living specimen in the late 1930s updated its presumed lost status. The coelacanth - try saying that a few times - is important because of its lobe-finned physiology, a prequel characteristic to the first fish that made the transition from sea to land, i.e. our own ancestors.
One of the first nonfiction books I ever gave 5 stars to was Your Inner Fish: a Journey into the 3.5-Billion-Year History of the Human Body, which follows the fossil discovery of an evolutionary cousin to the coelacanth, also lying at the intersection of aquatic and terrestrial life. This was a great companion piece, covering less of the actual hard science as Your Inner Fish, but richer in its modern history and the random/eclectic cast of characters.
I found the addition of pictures was really helpful. My only critique is that I wish more info was given on the coelacanth’s fossil record, but overall I really enjoyed this and would totally recommend.
4.5/5 stars
July 15, 2012
Old Four Legs. While that may sound like someone leaving a pub run, it's really the affectionate name given to the Coelacanth, a fish thought to have been extinct until its mind-altering appearance in 1938. Since then, more have surfaced with their electrifying blue color and prehistoric everything else. They were supposed to be extinct! How amazing. Like Jurassic Park underwater.
I first became fascinated with this living fossil thanks to a National Geographic issue dedicated to this strange being. This book continues that accessibility by not being very scientific and teaching the reader as much about the trade of the fishermen in the Comoros, as about the fish itself. What else is lurking down there? Captain Nemo? The Loch Ness Monster?
I believe.
Book Season = Summer (blue fish and green mojitos)
I first became fascinated with this living fossil thanks to a National Geographic issue dedicated to this strange being. This book continues that accessibility by not being very scientific and teaching the reader as much about the trade of the fishermen in the Comoros, as about the fish itself. What else is lurking down there? Captain Nemo? The Loch Ness Monster?
I believe.
Book Season = Summer (blue fish and green mojitos)
January 2, 2020
Not so much about the fish as about the people looking for it, this book is still interesting but it left me wanting to know more about the coelacanth. It came out 20 years ago so there are bound to be new developments. Though well-written it frequently made me feel like maybe someone should mention the realities of Apartheid while we're spending so much time in South Africa with very intelligent white people for whom all doors seem to open effortlessly. It also left a bitter aftertaste regarding our own species' treatment of this impressive fish. If extra-terrestrials ever come looking for us I sure hope they don't pull us out of our habitat over and over again to watch us die from lack of oxygen only to conclude another specimen is needed because at some point one has to survive, right?
March 18, 2020
Dressed in a neat black suit with a fake fur collar (which, she joked, was almost as old as the colecanth), Marjorie approached the microphone to deliver a short speech. She wanted to thank the South African Mint, she said, for the great honor, and also to trace briefly the events that led to her discovery. As she spoke about Captain Goosen, Bird Island, and J.L.B. Smith, about seeing the beautiful blue fish for the first time and her absolute conviction that it had to be saved, she put down her prepared notes. Speaking only from her sharp memory, she transported the audience back sixty years to a small museum in East London, and a young woman who was determined that the strange fish she had found was something special and had to be saved.
January 20, 2016
Impossible to put down. An inspiring tale of piscatorial love full of things I never would have expected, like the image of all of Connecticut filing through the room where a fish is lying in state like one of the crowned heads of Europe, with a police officer standing there directing traffic with tears running down his face. Not to mention the international intrigue, the Coelacanth-driven invention of the first really good submersible, and all kinds of great quotes that will be priceless on my fish blog. Not to be missed, people.
May 6, 2019
A non fiction story told almost in a yarn around the campfire style, very conversational but very informative. Most of all, have learnt so much bout the coelacanth from reading this.
Starting in 1938, the book essentially spans around 60 years looking at the rediscovery of the extinct prehistoric fish and the challenge to identify, catch and eventually conserve the coelacanth. A brilliant book that starts fast, has a little mini dip but then picks up the pace again.
Well worth reading if it interests you.
Starting in 1938, the book essentially spans around 60 years looking at the rediscovery of the extinct prehistoric fish and the challenge to identify, catch and eventually conserve the coelacanth. A brilliant book that starts fast, has a little mini dip but then picks up the pace again.
Well worth reading if it interests you.
June 2, 2015
This is one of my favourite non-fiction books of all time. If you are interested in fish or fossils or conservation it's for you. And if you're not particularly into any of those, read it anyway! It is entertaining and fast paced, and so readable. Don't be put off by the weird subject matter, it's all part of the charm!
July 24, 2019
Pode uma espécie de peixe causar tanto furor no mundo inteiro? Essa parece ser a pergunta que Samantha Weinberg procura responder no decorrer desse interessante livro de divulgação científica.
O peixe em questão é o celacanto, cuja espécie apareceu na Terra no Devoniana, há cerca de 400 milhões de anos, embora a maior quantidade de fosseis pertençam ao Carbonífero (há cerca de 350 milhões de anos), sendo que sua aparência pouco mudou nesse período. Os fósseis mais novos encontrados datavam entre 60 a 70 milhões de anos, e o mundo científico acreditava que se tratava de uma das espécies de peixe que deixaram os oceanos rumo à terra, possibilitando assim a evolução dos seres vivos terrestres. De fato, estão mais próximos aos peixes-pulmonados, aos répteis e aos mamíferos do que com os peixes comuns com nadadeiras radiais.
E então, próximo ao natal de 1938, uma museóloga sul-africana, Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer, reconheceu o peixe como uma espécie atualmente não conhecida dentre o cardume de diferentes peixes capturados próximo ao Rio Chalumna, trazidos pelo capitão Hendrik Goosen, da traineira Nerine. Coube ao amigo de Marjorie, o cientista J.L.B. Smith, identificar a ordem do peixe em questão, tendo batizado-o como gênero "Latimeria", e a espécie como "Latimeria chalumnae" (homenagem à Marjorie e ao rio onde foi encontrado).
Atualmente são conhecidas apenas duas especies de celacanto, Latimeria chalumnae que habita a costa índica da África, e Latimeria menadoensis, que habita a Indonésia. Trata-se de um verdadeiro fóssil vivo, sendo que suas características praticamente permaneceram paradas no tempo, sendo que muitas de suas características ainda são desconhecidas, visto que fora de seu habitat natural morrem rapidamente, impossibilitando o seu acompanhamento em aquários para observação.
O livro narra a história desde seu reconhecimento por Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer até o período um pouco após a descoberta da espécie Latimeria menadoensis. É uma história interessante. Em parte, e essa é pequena, de cientistas que em nome da preservação de uma espécie que ultrapassou os limites do tempo, preferiram deixá-los em paz (entre eles o próprio J.L.B. Smith, Hans Fricke e Mark Erdmann), apesar de serem aqueles que mais contribuíram para seu conhecimento científico. Por outro lado, sua descoberta causou uma procura incessante pelo peixe, sem qualquer interesse em sua preservação.
Ao fim, tive a sensação de que com poucas exceções, o ser humano é o ser mais podre que poderia ter surgido na face da Terra. Não se trata apenas de uma questão de sobrevivência mais, mas ganância desenfreada. E ainda queremos conquistar outros planetas. Poor universe.
O peixe em questão é o celacanto, cuja espécie apareceu na Terra no Devoniana, há cerca de 400 milhões de anos, embora a maior quantidade de fosseis pertençam ao Carbonífero (há cerca de 350 milhões de anos), sendo que sua aparência pouco mudou nesse período. Os fósseis mais novos encontrados datavam entre 60 a 70 milhões de anos, e o mundo científico acreditava que se tratava de uma das espécies de peixe que deixaram os oceanos rumo à terra, possibilitando assim a evolução dos seres vivos terrestres. De fato, estão mais próximos aos peixes-pulmonados, aos répteis e aos mamíferos do que com os peixes comuns com nadadeiras radiais.
E então, próximo ao natal de 1938, uma museóloga sul-africana, Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer, reconheceu o peixe como uma espécie atualmente não conhecida dentre o cardume de diferentes peixes capturados próximo ao Rio Chalumna, trazidos pelo capitão Hendrik Goosen, da traineira Nerine. Coube ao amigo de Marjorie, o cientista J.L.B. Smith, identificar a ordem do peixe em questão, tendo batizado-o como gênero "Latimeria", e a espécie como "Latimeria chalumnae" (homenagem à Marjorie e ao rio onde foi encontrado).
Atualmente são conhecidas apenas duas especies de celacanto, Latimeria chalumnae que habita a costa índica da África, e Latimeria menadoensis, que habita a Indonésia. Trata-se de um verdadeiro fóssil vivo, sendo que suas características praticamente permaneceram paradas no tempo, sendo que muitas de suas características ainda são desconhecidas, visto que fora de seu habitat natural morrem rapidamente, impossibilitando o seu acompanhamento em aquários para observação.
O livro narra a história desde seu reconhecimento por Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer até o período um pouco após a descoberta da espécie Latimeria menadoensis. É uma história interessante. Em parte, e essa é pequena, de cientistas que em nome da preservação de uma espécie que ultrapassou os limites do tempo, preferiram deixá-los em paz (entre eles o próprio J.L.B. Smith, Hans Fricke e Mark Erdmann), apesar de serem aqueles que mais contribuíram para seu conhecimento científico. Por outro lado, sua descoberta causou uma procura incessante pelo peixe, sem qualquer interesse em sua preservação.
Ao fim, tive a sensação de que com poucas exceções, o ser humano é o ser mais podre que poderia ter surgido na face da Terra. Não se trata apenas de uma questão de sobrevivência mais, mas ganância desenfreada. E ainda queremos conquistar outros planetas. Poor universe.
February 16, 2021
If one is interested in ichthyology, this book will be a must read. It details the discovery of the coelacanth in 1938-9, a fossil fish thought extinct for 70 million years. The beautiful fish was noticed in a fisherman's catch by a young woman in South Africa who was not a scientist but who had studied fish with a preeminent ichthyologist and knew she was seeing something unusual. The confirmation that the fish was a coelacanth stunned the scientific community. No fish of any kind previously thought extinct for so long had ever been discovered living in the ocean. This discovery brought much fame to the scientist, J. L. B. Smith, who identified the fish and fuelled his passion to find more coelacanths and study them thoroughly. He wanted to figure out how they had survived for so long and to determine if they were the fish who originally "walked on land" as the ancestors to human beings.
I read this book for my around the world reading challenge for the country of Comoros. The only known native habitat of the colelacanth for 60 years after its scientific discovery is in the waters off of Comoros. And while the story of this ancient fish was fascinating, I have a greater interest in learning about the people of the four tiny islands that comprise Comoros. There is some history of the islands and how they were first inhabited and the history of the governance by France for almost 100 years until its independence in 1975. It is noted that there is little industry other than fishing for the men to do so they are fishermen who marry the sisters of fishermen, and even for those who pursue intellectual interests, they are stuck with fishing for lack of other options. The history is all too brief and the country takes a back seat in importance to the fish, which I understand but am still disappointed not to learn more about the people.
I read this book for my around the world reading challenge for the country of Comoros. The only known native habitat of the colelacanth for 60 years after its scientific discovery is in the waters off of Comoros. And while the story of this ancient fish was fascinating, I have a greater interest in learning about the people of the four tiny islands that comprise Comoros. There is some history of the islands and how they were first inhabited and the history of the governance by France for almost 100 years until its independence in 1975. It is noted that there is little industry other than fishing for the men to do so they are fishermen who marry the sisters of fishermen, and even for those who pursue intellectual interests, they are stuck with fishing for lack of other options. The history is all too brief and the country takes a back seat in importance to the fish, which I understand but am still disappointed not to learn more about the people.
February 25, 2022
The Coelacanth (pronounced See-la-kanth). Another creature I’d never heard of and knew nothing about. A great big fish with prehistoric features yet still alive in a few - not many - places. A brief review of those who sought it out from the mid 1800s to today - a interesting assortment of naturalists, ichthyologists, man and women alike. Nicely illustrated with maps, drawings and photographs in amongst the text.
Thanks to my reading buddy Barb for the recommendation.
Thanks to my reading buddy Barb for the recommendation.
January 30, 2024
wonderfully written, not too hard to digest, and exciting! I love this book :)
February 5, 2025
Coelacanth! Coelacanth!! Coelacanth!!!
June 5, 2024
Wow this book was such a masterpiece. Read it at a rather low point of my life (this week) and it still thrilled and charmed.
Spoiler: a fish from the Devonian era 400 million years ago is still around today. And its existence has been political since its discovery in 1930s, both because it provides such strong proof of evolution (as a fish with characteristics that would evolve into that of reptiles) and because it was discovered in the Comoran Islands, which was at the time a French trading outpost. Lots of struggle over who could lay claim to it, and as the Comoran islands became independent within the century, the politics of local island sovereignty and economics balanced against the interests of international science.
I’m not someone who typically likes biographical details in nonfiction but they really helped paint a picture of an entire world that came together to find and study a fish, at times against all odds. The book does a good job at capturing the little details - the rush to transport and preserve the internal organs with the constraints of 1930s communications tech - and the sweeping scale of it all - that something which existed before dinosaurs can still swim in the oceans we exist in today.
Spoiler: a fish from the Devonian era 400 million years ago is still around today. And its existence has been political since its discovery in 1930s, both because it provides such strong proof of evolution (as a fish with characteristics that would evolve into that of reptiles) and because it was discovered in the Comoran Islands, which was at the time a French trading outpost. Lots of struggle over who could lay claim to it, and as the Comoran islands became independent within the century, the politics of local island sovereignty and economics balanced against the interests of international science.
I’m not someone who typically likes biographical details in nonfiction but they really helped paint a picture of an entire world that came together to find and study a fish, at times against all odds. The book does a good job at capturing the little details - the rush to transport and preserve the internal organs with the constraints of 1930s communications tech - and the sweeping scale of it all - that something which existed before dinosaurs can still swim in the oceans we exist in today.
April 9, 2025
“In appearance, at least, the coelacanth is less a fish than a bizarre confection of mismatched parts—modern, ancient, and unique.”
I loved this book, although some of the more historic sections were a bit slow for me. What really endeared me to it is that it’s not just a story of a remarkable fish, but also that of the passionate and obsessive people who are responsible for bringing this fish to the scientific community. Majorie Courtenay-Latimer I hope one day your name is as well known as Rosalind Franklin or Marie Curie.
I loved this book, although some of the more historic sections were a bit slow for me. What really endeared me to it is that it’s not just a story of a remarkable fish, but also that of the passionate and obsessive people who are responsible for bringing this fish to the scientific community. Majorie Courtenay-Latimer I hope one day your name is as well known as Rosalind Franklin or Marie Curie.
January 28, 2020
This book tells of the discovery of the coelacanth, a fish that was believed to be extinct, but was then seen in 1938 when a museum curator in South Africa saw a specimen that had been caught by a local fisherman. Until this time the coelacanth existed only in fossil record. The coelacanth is believed to be a missing evolutionary link, and with fins that resemble a possible forerunner to legs, a close ancestor of the first animals to leave the sea and become land dwellers. The initial discovery of the coelacanth led to a a lot of excitement among ichthyologists and evolutionary biologists and scientists around the world began a massive search to discover a living specimen.
This book was really engaging. It was interesting how much hate mail scientists working on the coelacanth got because they were using this discovery as evidence for evolutionary theory. The second specimen of the coelacanth was found by a fisherman in the Comoros, where huge monetary rewards were offered. At the time the Comoros was a French colony, so there was all kinds of debates about who had the rights to the coelacanth. More rewards were offered, some equaling the amount of what a fisherman would typically make in five years. Eventually rewards were being offered by multiple countries, as many countries wanted a coelacanth for their museums and some nations even began to tout the healing properties of parts of the fish. It was interesting to read about the dynamics between the scientists in the European colonial nations, and the impoverished populations of the islands. On one hand, I love scientific inquiry. On the other hand, the whole things just felt so exploitative of the people of the Comoros. Additionally, the incentives for fishermen to catch a coelacanth led to over fishing and scientists soon began to worry that the coelacanth population would soon become extinct. This book was originally published over 20 years ago, and I really wanted there to be an updated epilogue. Alas, there was not.
This book was really engaging. It was interesting how much hate mail scientists working on the coelacanth got because they were using this discovery as evidence for evolutionary theory. The second specimen of the coelacanth was found by a fisherman in the Comoros, where huge monetary rewards were offered. At the time the Comoros was a French colony, so there was all kinds of debates about who had the rights to the coelacanth. More rewards were offered, some equaling the amount of what a fisherman would typically make in five years. Eventually rewards were being offered by multiple countries, as many countries wanted a coelacanth for their museums and some nations even began to tout the healing properties of parts of the fish. It was interesting to read about the dynamics between the scientists in the European colonial nations, and the impoverished populations of the islands. On one hand, I love scientific inquiry. On the other hand, the whole things just felt so exploitative of the people of the Comoros. Additionally, the incentives for fishermen to catch a coelacanth led to over fishing and scientists soon began to worry that the coelacanth population would soon become extinct. This book was originally published over 20 years ago, and I really wanted there to be an updated epilogue. Alas, there was not.
August 21, 2016
Samantha Weinberg provides a comfortably informative and exciting narrative about the history of the coelacanth since its rediscovery in 1938 off South Africa's east coast. She weaves information about the persons (and personalities!) involved with the huge drama in scientific and even diplomatic levels set in motion by this improbable yet all too real event. Although similar books were written previously, Weinberg could include the discovery of coelacanths in Indonesia. All the lovely coincidences related to these events are deftly told. This book is an excellent introduction to coelacanth lore. I wonder now: has enough happened in the last sixteen years since its publication to warrant some more chapters?
Samantha Weinberg se boek oor die opspraakwekkende ontdekking dat die selekant nog leef en nie 40 miljoen jaar uitgesterf het nie, is toeganklik en bevat genoeg inligting oor die mense betrokke dat die leser die dramas wat daardeur ontketen is, goed kan verstaan. Wat was die verwikkelinge die afgelope sestien jaar sedert publikasie? Is 'n heruitgawe met ekstra hoofstukke moontlik? Ten spyte van die magdom fassinerende inligting wat sedert 1938 versamel is, weet die mens nog nie naastenby alles nie. Die ontdekking van lewende selekante in Indonesië in die 1990's het dit onomwonde bewys. Hopelik sal Weinberg self, of 'n onderhoudende skrywer soos sy, die nuwe stories aan die publiek bekend kan stel.
Samantha Weinberg se boek oor die opspraakwekkende ontdekking dat die selekant nog leef en nie 40 miljoen jaar uitgesterf het nie, is toeganklik en bevat genoeg inligting oor die mense betrokke dat die leser die dramas wat daardeur ontketen is, goed kan verstaan. Wat was die verwikkelinge die afgelope sestien jaar sedert publikasie? Is 'n heruitgawe met ekstra hoofstukke moontlik? Ten spyte van die magdom fassinerende inligting wat sedert 1938 versamel is, weet die mens nog nie naastenby alles nie. Die ontdekking van lewende selekante in Indonesië in die 1990's het dit onomwonde bewys. Hopelik sal Weinberg self, of 'n onderhoudende skrywer soos sy, die nuwe stories aan die publiek bekend kan stel.
April 6, 2009
This is both an educative and entertaining book about the search for a prehistoric fish. Long believed extinct, the Coelacanth was first discovered off the waters of South Africa in the Indian Ocean in 1938. Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer was a young curator at the East London museum when she recognized there was something odd in one of the fish brought to her by a fishing boat. She contacted J.L.B. Smith, a recognized scientist who would become obsessed with the living fossil--and would later name the fish Latimeria Chalumnae, after Marjorie. The first two-thirds of the book read like a suspense novel, with international politics and intrigue mounting as the search for the Coelacanth heats up in the waters surrounding the Comoros. Samantha Weinberg writes in an engaging manner while painting lively portraits of Marjorie, J.L.B., his wife Margaret, and other protagonists in the story. The final part of the book, which traces later efforts to first capture and then protect the fish, is interesting but no longer equally suspenseful. All in all a fine book for anyone interested in natural history and evolutionary biology--and even those who just enjoy an unusual story in an exotic setting.
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