Featured Image Credit: Shedd Aquarium
By Alice Morris
It’s hard to say goodbye to an old friend, and last week Chicago’s Shedd Aquarium said goodbye to their oldest friend, Granddad the lungfish.
Shedd estimates that the Australian lungfish was over 100 years old, making him the oldest aquarium fish in the world. Granddad was acquired in 1933 from the Taronga Zoo & Aquarium in Sydney, Australia to be displayed at Chicago’s 1933 World’s Fair, “A Century of Progress International Exhibition.”
The Shedd aquarium released the following statement last Monday on their Facebook page:
“Today we’re saddened to share that the Shedd family has bid farewell to one of our best-loved members. Australian lungfish Granddad, who made Shedd his home since 1933, was humanely euthanized Sunday due to a rapid decline in quality of life associated with old age.
“In his long life at Shedd, Granddad offered fond memories and a shared connection with the living world to generations of visitors. We ask you to keep the Shedd family in your thoughts during this difficult time, especially the caregivers most deeply affected by his passing.”
In his more than 80 years at the Shedd Aquarium, Granddad intrigued and fascinated over 104 million visitors.
Nathan de Rover, one of Granddad’s fans and a regular at the aquarium, posted this fond tribute to his favorite lungfish:
“Granddad meant a lot to me. I remember seeing him when I was a little boy visiting the aquarium. I would always check in with him during the many, many trips I’ve made. In fact, in 2015, my wife and I got married at the aquarium right in front of his tank so he could be our witness.”
Bridget Coughlin, the aquarium’s president and CEO, also commented on Granddad’s unique allure.
“For a fish who spent much of his time imitating a fallen log, he sparked curiosity, excitement and wonder among guests of all ages,” she said, adding that visitors “would hear his story and learn about the incredible biology that makes his species a living fossil and one of the oldest living vertebrate genera on the planet.”
So what was Granddad’s secret to a long life?
One of Granddad’s caretakers attributes his longevity to a “relaxed life” and a “balanced diet” of seafood, fruits, vegetables, and a weekly treat of earthworms.
Australian lungfish are native to the Mary and Burnett Rivers in Queensland, where they are a protected species.
In addition to gills, these remarkable fish have “primitive lungs” that allow them to breathe air during times of drought when river water becomes stagnant. Lungfish have existed for over 380 million years, remaining more or less unchanged for the past 100 million years.