advertisement

These animals outlive humans: Top 10 longest living critters

WASHINGTON (AP) - More than a dozen animals live longer than we do. A new study estimates that at least one Greenland shark lived about 392 years, making it the longest-living animal with a backbone.

Here are the animals that the scientific longevity database AnAge says have lived the longest. Many of these live in the cold and in water.

The longest-living human reached 122.5 years.

1. Hexactinellid sponge: One of these Antarctic sponges lived for an estimated 15,000 years.

2. Epibenthic sponge: Another Antarctic sponge that is generally estimated to live 1,550 years.

3. Ocean quahog: This clam, nicknamed "Ming," had its rings measured and it lived 507 years.

4. Greenland shark: A new study estimates the age of one of these sharks at 392, but it could have been somewhere between 512 and 272 years old when it died.

5. Bowhead whale: One male bowhead living in the Arctic waters was estimated to be 211 years old when it died.

6. Rougheye rockfish: These red fish of the North Pacific have lived to be 205 years old and show little effects of aging in life.

7. Red sea urchin: The spiny critters also don't seem to age much and are estimated to live about 200 years.

8. Galapagos tortoise: These slow moving creatures seen by Charles Darwin have lived as long as 177 years old.

9. Shortraker rockfish: These orange-pink fish have lived up to 157 years.

10. Aldabra tortoise and Lake sturgeon: A tortoise that died at a zoo was 152 years old; unconfirmed reports put some of these tortoises living up to 180 years. One lake sturgeon, a bottom-feeder fish, is reported to have lived to be 152.

FILE - This Nov. 6, 1987 file photo shows an 11-foot sturgeon, weighing nearly a half-ton, found dead in Seattle's Lake Washington, near Kirkland, Wash. In the area, tales have long persisted of a huge, duck-eating "monster." A member of this bottom-feeder fish species is reported to have lived to be 152. (AP Photo/Jim Bates) The Associated Press
This undated photo made available by Julius Nielsen on Aug. 11, 2016 shows a two-meter-long Greenland shark female from southwestern Greenland. In a report released Thursday, Aug. 11, 2016, scientists calculate this species of shark is Earth’s oldest living animal with a backbone. They estimate that one of those they examined was born roughly 400 years ago, about the time of the Pilgrims in the U.S., and kept on swimming until it died only a couple years ago. (Julius Nielsen via AP) The Associated Press
Article Comments
Guidelines: Keep it civil and on topic; no profanity, vulgarity, slurs or personal attacks. People who harass others or joke about tragedies will be blocked. If a comment violates these standards or our terms of service, click the "flag" link in the lower-right corner of the comment box. To find our more, read our FAQ.