Coelacanth

The Coelacanth, a fish previously believed to be extinct for seventy million years, was discovered alive off South Africa in 1938. This primitive fish's survival offered significant insights into evolutionary biology, particularly as a close relative of early land vertebrates.
 J. L. B. Smith South Africa 1938 Coelacanth

The Coelacanth, a fish previously believed to be extinct for seventy million years, was discovered alive off South Africa in 1938. This primitive fish's survival offered significant insights into evolutionary biology, particularly as a close relative of early land vertebrates.