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Mark McGrouther
Collection Manager, Ichthyology

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Technical Officer, Ichthyology

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'Living fossil' eel in an undersea cave

Dr Dave Johnson from the US National Museum in Washington just emailed me about an incredible eel that he and colleagues recently described.  The fish, Protanguilla palau, is now classified in a new family, the Protanguillidae.  It is one of the oldest eels (in evolutionary terms) known.

The video was taken in a cave at a depth of 35 m on a fringing reef in Palau.  For more information on the paper go to the Proceedings of the Royal Society website.

Dave Johnson at the Australian Museum.


Mark McGrouther , Collection Manager, Ichthyology
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Tags fishes, ichthyology, living fossil, eel, Palau, Protanguillidae, Protanguilla palau,