Coelacanth

Fossils of this fish are known from the Devonian of 380 million years ago to almost the end of the Cretaceous 70 million years ago. Because no fossils have ever been found in rocks younger than this, the coelacanth was thought to be extinct until in 1938 a trawler off the coast of Southern Africa brought a live specimen to the surface in its nets.

This primitive lobe finned fish grows to 5 feet long and can weigh up to 150lb. Once widespread in seas around the world, they were known only from the waters between Southern Africa and Madagascar until a small popoulation was recently discovered off the coast of Indonesia.