That's right folks. A very unique fish, the mangrove rivulus, also known as the mangrove killifish, is native to the Americas and is about two inches long, is able to live out of water.
National Geographic has reported studies that suggest the animals can breathe continuously through their skin, as long as they remain in a moist environment. The fish have been discovered to crowd together in logs when their habit, a swamp, annually dries up. Scientists estimate that the fish can live out of the water for 66 days.
The mangrove rivulus is not new to scientific study. It has a very rare sexual design. It's the only vertebrate known to naturally self-fertilize. In some populations, it can become a hermaphrodite, developing both male and female parts simultaneously. In these situations it has been known to clone itself.
The preliminary results of research will appear in an upcoming issue of the journal American Naturalist.
This fish could be key to understanding how life original left the oceans and came onto land.
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1 comment:
Wow. That's cool.
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