Though these creatures may seem unchanged, they’ve evolved in hidden ways.
When you look at a crocodile, it’s easy to feel like you’re staring into the distant past. These ancient-looking reptiles, with their scaly skin and fearsome teeth, seem like living fossils — creatures frozen in time, unchanged for millions of years.has long fascinated scientists and laypeople alike. It describes organisms that appear remarkably similar to their ancient ancestors in the fossil record.
But despite its ancient appearance, the coelacanth has been evolving over the past several hundred million years — and even much more recently than that. For instance, in 2021, researchers discovered that approximately 10 million years ago,The idea that some animals have remained entirely unchanged for hundreds of millions of years is compelling, but it doesn’t really hold up under scrutiny. All species are subject to evolutionary pressures.
However, what does set these so-called living fossils apart from other species is their ability to stumble on a successful form that allows them to thrive for incredibly long periods of time. Evolution, as it turns out, is not always about change for the sake of change — it’s about sticking to what works and adapting to what doesn’t.use peer-reviewed studies and high-quality sources for our articles, and our editors review for scientific accuracy and editorial standards.
Coelacanth genome surfaces: Unexpected insights from a fish with a 300-million-year-old fossil record Jake Parks is a freelance writer and editor who specializes in covering science news. He has previously written for Astronomy magazine, Discover Magazine, The Ohio State University, the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and more.
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