Scientists Detect DNA Of Alive Prehistoric Fish In The Connecticut River, Kicking Off A Race To Locate It

They can weigh up to 50 pounds and stretch 5 feet long.

Daphnie

• Published in Animals
• September 16, 2024

When it comes to being human, we know a lot about our history and we've gone through many different changes. However, one thing that we only know a bit about is prehistoric animals, especially those in the ocean.

We all know that there are undiscovered animals inside of the ocean because we really haven't gotten to see all the different areas of the ocean. With this said, we also know of animals and fish that were around, but we've never seen them in person before.

No matter what the circumstance is, it's always so fun to see what kind of new animals or species are found in the ocean especially those that have been around for millions of years. It's insane to even think that a fish or animal could live for millions of years and survive through many different things, including the comet that took out the dinosaurs.

In this article, we're going to be taking a look at a prehistoric fish that has just been confirmed in the Connecticut River. This fish is definitely a tribute to just how amazing it is to think that these animals lived through so much.

We're going to look at what kind of fish this is and why it's so important now that it's been found in the Connecticut River.

Already this fish looks pretty cool and really awesome that it's survived this long.

Researchers at the Connecticut River Conservancy have started an ongoing investigation that's led to sampling the waters of the Connecticut River across Massachusetts, Vermont, and New Hampshire. This led to the discovery of shortnose surgeons in the river by detecting the endangered fish with environmental DNA.

James Garner, a PhD Candidate at UMass Amherst, said, "Our multiple positive environmental DNA detections now provide the first scientific evidence to back up these community members' reports - confirming the presence of shortnose sturgeon upstream of these dams."

These fish look so cool and it's no wonder they made it this far as a species.

Shortnose sturgeons have "body armor" that consists of five rows of scutes, which are external bony plates. They can stretch to five feet long and can weigh fifty pounds.

"This collaboration highlights the invaluable role that local knowledge plays in guiding scientific inquiry and demonstrates how eDNA technology can help us monitor and protect endangered species," said Garner.

These fish are considered prehistoric since the fish date back to the time of the dinosaurs.

They are a protected species because they are endangered, which makes it illegal to possess a shortnose sturgeon.

In the mid 1800s, the shortnose sturgeons supported "thriving and profitable fishers for caviar, smoked meat, and oil." This is what led to the over-exploitation of the species and ultimately led to them being endangered.

Seven million pounds of Sturgeons were caught in 1890 where as only over twenty thousand pounds were caught one hundred years later. "The presence of numerous dams on the mainstem, habitat degradation, and commercial fishing have negatively impacted populations of this fish, as they have for many native migratory species," said the CRC's press release.

It's very interesting to even just see a species that has been around for this long and it's interesting to see how they've developed over time. It's always an awesome discovery when we find a species that's said to be endangered and hopefully these shortnose surgeons will grow more in population to get them back to how they were prior to the 1800s.

Daphnie