16 November 2009

 

To Media offices

From Aquamarine Fukushima, Marine Science Museum

Breaking News: The first sighting of juvenile Indonesian coelacanth

Two species of coelacanths, African and Indonesian are known. A biological survey around Manado Bay in North Sulawesi,

Indonesia on the Indonesian Coelacanth has been conducted by the Aquamarine Fukushima (AMF), jointly with the

Indonesian Institute of Science (LIPI) and Sam Ratulangi University (UNSRAT).

A live juvenile of Indonesian coelacanth, estimated as newborn was found and filmed by ROV operation in the water of Manado Bay.

This will be the first sighting in the world for both species of the coelacanths.

 

Following is the data of survey;

 

1.            LOCATION

Manado Bay, North Sulawesi Province, Republic of Indonesia

2.            DATE AND TIME

October 6, 2009 11:33 – 11:51 am

3.            HABITAT

Depth: 161m

Inside of a narrow crack of rock

4.            NUMBER

One individual

5.            BODY LENGTH

31.5cm (estimated by laser beam measurement)

　

 

6.            SIGNIFICANCE OF THE FINDING

Even though lots of studies and researches have been made in the past on the coelacanth since the first discovery in 1938,

their biology is remaining in the mystery. Coelacanth is known as ovoviviparous giving birth juveniles instead of eggs.

Information on their reproduction, especially, on mating, gestation and birthing is definitely unknown.

Coelacanth is supposed to give birth juvenile as 30 – 40 cm in body length, because a pregnant female with such size unborn

 juveniles was captured off Mozambique in 1991. The size of juveniles of the Mozambique specimen proves that present

juvenile of the Indonesian coelacanth filmed is believed to be a younger individual not to live a long time after birth.

Since the depth of water encountered the juvenile is same as adult, the coelacanths also believed to give birth in

the same depth as the habitat of adult fish. The juvenile was in the narrow crack just fit to its body size.

Present discovery lights to the mystery of the coelacanths biology, which has not been cleared for 70 years since the first discovery.

 

7.            Operator of ROV

Staff of the Greeneye Project;

Masamitsu Iwata, Chief of Conservation Center of AMF

Kotaro Yoshimura, Greeneye Project Member of AMF

 

Aquamarine Fukushima, Marine Science Museum

http://www.marine.fks.ed.jp

 

8.            Collaborated  institutions

Indonesian Institute of Science (LIPI)

Sam Ratulangi University (UNSRAT)