Nicola Davis “400-year-old Greenland shark is oldest vertebrate animal” https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/aug/11/400-year-old-greenland-shark-is-the-oldest-vertebrate-animal
コペンハーゲン大学のJulius Nielsen氏*1らの調査teamは2010年から2013年にかけて捕獲された28頭の雌のニシオンデンザメ（Greenland shark）*2の年齢を確定した。そのうちの１頭は約400歳だった。これは世界最長寿の脊椎動物ということになる。それよりも、この研究の意義は鮫の年齢を推定するための方法の探求というところにあるといえるだろう；
Julius Nielsen, Rasmus B. Hedeholm, Jan Heinemeier, Peter G. Bushnell, Jørgen S. Christiansen, Jesper Olsen, Christopher Bronk Ramsey, Richard W. Brill, Malene Simon, Kirstine F. Steffensen, John F. Steffensen “Eye lens radiocarbon reveals centuries of longevity in the Greenland shark (Somniosus microcephalus)” http://science.sciencemag.org/content/353/6300/702
『ガーディアン』の記事から引用；
ところで、このニシオンデンザメはあくまでも世界最長寿の脊椎動物であって、これまでに確認された世界最長寿の動物は2006年にアイスランドで見つかった「貝のミン（Ming the clam）」で、享年507歳*4。また、「ミン」以外の長寿動植物を巡っては、
Grey, plump and growing to lengths of around five metres, the Greenland shark is one of the world’s largest carnivores. With a reported growth rate of less than one centimetre a year, they were already thought to be long-lived creatures, but just how long they lived for was something of a mystery.“Fish biologists have tried to determine the age and longevity of Greenland sharks for decades, but without success.” said Steven Campana*3, a shark expert from the University of Iceland. “Given that this shark is the apex predator (king of the food chain) in Arctic waters, it is almost unbelievable that we didn’t know whether the shark lives for 20 years, or for 1000 years.”
Stuart Heritage “Ming the clam was not the only really ancient living thing on Earth” https://www.theguardian.com/world/shortcuts/2013/nov/14/ming-clam-ancient-living-thing
もマークしておく。
See also
Rebecca Morelle “400-year-old Greenland shark ‘longest-living vertebrate’” http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-37047168
*1:See eg. http://www1.bio.ku.dk/english/staff/?pure=en/persons/288904 https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Julius_Nielsen
*2:See eg. “The Greenland Shark: An Icy Mystery” http://sharkopedia.discovery.com/types-of-sharks/greenland-shark/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greenland_shark https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%83%8B%E3%82%B7%E3%82%AA%E3%83%B3%E3%83%87%E3%83%B3%E3%82%B6%E3%83%A1
*3:See eg. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Steven_Campana
*4:See eg. Danielle Elliot “Ming the clam, world's oldest animal, was actually 507 years old” http://www.cbsnews.com/news/ming-the-clam-worlds-oldest-animal-was-actually-507-years-old/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ming_(clam) 当初は「405歳と410歳の間」と推定されていた。See “Ming the clam is oldest mollusc” http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7066389.stm
