Ming the Mollusk was the oldest documented creature on earth who lived for 507 years. Born in 1499, seven years after Christopher Columbus first arrived in North America, Ming succumbed to an untimely death in 2006 when researchers trying to determine its age opened the clam and killed it in the process. We don’t know how much longer Ming would have lived but his fate is an example of an unfortunate encounter between people and animals.
Biochemist and geneticist Cynthia Kenyon is working on unlocking the secrets of longevity. Eight years ago, during a TED talk in Edinburgh, Scotland, she talked about aging. “There are some animals that don’t seem to age,” said Kenyon. “If you look at birds, which live a long time, cells from the birds tend to be more resistant to a lot of environmental stresses like high temperature, or hydrogen peroxide.”
The majority of species on our list are either fish or mammals like whales that live in the ocean. Size doesn’t appear to be a factor in how long animals live. Salamanders called olms that weigh less than an ounce can live as long as 102 years. The largest animal on Earth, the blue whale, can live up to 110 years. Despite its size, the blue whale is not among the most dangerous mammals on Earth. These are the deadliest mammals in the world.
24/7 Tempo reviewed animal aging and longevity data from AnAge, a curated database on animal history, genomes, and longevity records, that is part of the Human Ageing Genomic Resources (HAGR) suite of databases to identify the longest-living animals in the world. The world’s longest-living animals were identified by examining their maximum longevity, supplemented by our analysis of specimen, kingdom, and genus.
Only organisms from the Kingdom Animalia were included. Animals from the phylum Porifera, such as sponges, were excluded. The average adult weight of each organism that was not provided by AnAge was confirmed by a variety of internet sources. Only animals considered to have an acceptable data quality or higher by AnAge were included.
Methodology
To identify the longest-living animals in the world, 24/7 Tempo reviewed animal aging and longevity data from AnAge, a curated database on animal history, genomes, and longevity records, that is part of the Human Ageing Genomic Resources (HAGR) suite of databases. The longest-living animals were identified by examining their maximum longevity, supplemented by our analysis of specimen, kingdom, and genus. Only organisms from the Kingdom Animalia were included. Animals from the phylum Porifera, such as sponges, were excluded. The average adult weight of each organism that was not provided by AnAge was confirmed by a variety of internet sources. Only animals considered to have an acceptable data quality or higher by AnAge were included.
Here are the world’s longest-living animals:
50. American alligator
- Oldest recorded: 77 years
- Average adult weight: 330.7 lbs.
- Habitat: Southern United States
49. Sperm whale
- Oldest recorded: 77 years
- Average adult weight: 62,831.7 lbs.
- Habitat: All major ocean basins
48. Gray whale
- Oldest recorded: 77 years
- Average adult weight: 62,831.7 lbs.
- Habitat: Northern Pacific Ocean
47. China rockfish
- Oldest recorded: 79 years
- Average adult weight: 2.0 lbs.
- Habitat: Northern Pacific Ocean
46. Andean condor
- Oldest recorded: 79 years
- Average adult weight: 23.1 lbs.
- Habitat: Pacific Coast of South America
45. Silvergray rockfish
- Oldest recorded: 82 years
- Average adult weight: 5.7 lbs.
- Habitat: Northern Pacific Ocean
44. Pink cockatoo
- Oldest recorded: 83 years
- Average adult weight: 0.9 lbs.
- Habitat: Australia
43. Canary rockfish
- Oldest recorded: 84 years
- Average adult weight: 5.5 lbs.
- Habitat: Northern Pacific Ocean
42. Splitnose rockfish
- Oldest recorded: 84 years
- Average adult weight: 1.0 lbs.
- Habitat: Northern Pacific Ocean
41. Baird’s beaked whale
- Oldest recorded: 84 years
- Average adult weight: 25,088.6 lbs.
- Habitat: Northern Pacific Ocean
40. Rosethorn rockfish
- Oldest recorded: 87 years
- Average adult weight: 3.3 lbs.
- Habitat: Northern Pacific Ocean
39. European eel
- Oldest recorded: 88 years
- Average adult weight: 8.0 lbs.
- Habitat: All over the European Continent
38. Quillback rockfish
- Oldest recorded: 90 years
- Average adult weight: 4.0 lbs.
- Habitat: Northern Pacific Ocean
37. Atlantic halibut
- Oldest recorded: 90 years
- Average adult weight: 388.0 lbs.
- Habitat: Northern Atlantic Ocean
36. Tuatara
- Oldest recorded: 90 years
- Average adult weight: 0.9 lbs.
- Habitat: Off the coast of New Zealand
35. Killer whale
- Oldest recorded: 90 years
- Average adult weight: 8,790.9 lbs.
- Habitat: All major ocean basins
34. Humpback whale
- Oldest recorded: 95 years
- Average adult weight: 66,138.7 lbs.
- Habitat: All major ocean basins
33. Yellowmouth rockfish
- Oldest recorded: 99 years
- Average adult weight: 3.2 lbs.
- Habitat: Northern Pacific Ocean
32. Smooth oreo
- Oldest recorded: 100 years
- Average adult weight: 6.1 lbs.
- Habitat: Off the coast of Australia and South America
31. Spiky oreo
- Oldest recorded: 100 years
- Average adult weight: 2.4 lbs.
- Habitat: Southeast Atlantic Ocean
30. Black oreo
- Oldest recorded: 100 years
- Average adult weight: 1.8 lbs.
- Habitat: Off the coast of Australia and New Zealand
29. Pacific Ocean perch
- Oldest recorded: 100 years
- Average adult weight: 1.7 lbs.
- Habitat: Northern Pacific Ocean
28. European sturgeon
- Oldest recorded: 100 years
- Average adult weight: 485.0 lbs.
- Habitat: Southern Europe
27. Yаngtze sturgeоn
- Oldest recorded: 100 years
- Average adult weight: 331.0 lbs.
- Habitat: Yangtze River, China, and Korean Peninsula
26. American lobster
- Oldest recorded: 100 years
- Average adult weight: 3.5 lbs.
- Habitat: Northern Atlantic Ocean
25. Olm
- Oldest recorded: 102 years
- Average adult weight: 17 grams
- Habitat: Southern Europe
24. Telescope cardinal
- Oldest recorded: 104 years
- Average adult weight: 0.1 lbs.
- Habitat: North America
23. White sturgeon
- Oldest recorded: 104 years
- Average adult weight: 989.4 lbs.
- Habitat: Norwest Coast of North America
22. Redbanded rockfish
- Oldest recorded: 106 years
- Average adult weight: 5.4 lbs.
- Habitat: Northern Pacific Ocean
21. Blue whale
- Oldest recorded: 110 years
- Average adult weight: 299,828.7 lbs.
- Habitat: All Oceans except the Arctic
20. Sablefish
- Oldest recorded: 114 years
- Average adult weight: 69.1 lbs.
- Habitat: Northern Pacific Ocean
19. Fin whale
- Oldest recorded: 114 years
- Average adult weight: 154,323.6 lbs.
- Habitat: Northern Atlantic Ocean
18. Shortspine thornyhead
- Oldest recorded: 115 years
- Average adult weight: 2.8 lbs.
- Habitat: Northern Pacific Ocean
17. Tiger rockfish
- Oldest recorded: 116 years
- Average adult weight: 2.7 lbs.
- Habitat: Northern Pacific Ocean
16. Rasphead rockfish
- Oldest recorded: 118 years
- Average adult weight: 21.6 lbs.
- Habitat: Northern Pacific Ocean
15. Beluga sturgeon
- Oldest recorded: 118 years
- Average adult weight: 2,512.4 lbs.
- Habitat: Black, Caspian, Azov, and Adriatic Seas
14. European pond turtle
- Oldest recorded: 120 years
- Average adult weight: 2.0 lbs.
- Habitat: Central Europe, Northwest Africa, Middle East
13. Mediterranean spur-thighed tortoise
- Oldest recorded: 127 years
- Average adult weight: 13.0 lbs.
- Habitat: North Africa, Southwest Asia, and Southern Europe
12. Eastern box turtle
- Oldest recorded: 138 years
- Average adult weight: 1.5 lbs.
- Habitat: North America and Gulf of Mexico
11. Warty oreo
- Oldest recorded: 140 years
- Average adult weight: 2.4 lbs.
- Habitat: Northern Pacific and Indian Ocean
10. Orange roughy
- Oldest recorded: 149 years
- Average adult weight: 8.5 lbs.
- Habitat: Southern Coast of Australia
9. Aldabra tortoise
- Oldest recorded: 152 years
- Average adult weight: 550.0 lbs.
- Habitat: Indian Ocean
8. Lake sturgeon
- Oldest recorded: 152 years
- Average adult weight: 154.3 lbs.
- Habitat: Great Lake Basin
7. Shortraker rockfish
- Oldest recorded: 157 years
- Average adult weight: 19.6 lbs.
- Habitat: Northern Pacific Ocean
6. Galapagos tortoise
- Oldest recorded: 177 years
- Average adult weight: 500.0 lbs.
- Habitat: Southern Pacific Ocean
5. Red sea urchin
- Oldest recorded: 200 years
- Average adult weight: 1.0 lbs.
- Habitat: Northern Pacific Ocean
4. Rougheye rockfish
- Oldest recorded: 205 years
- Average adult weight: 1.1 lbs.
- Habitat: Northern Pacific Ocean
3. Bowhead whale
- Oldest recorded: 211 years
- Average adult weight: 220,462.3 lbs.
- Habitat: Arctic Ocean
2. Greenland shark
- Oldest recorded: 392 years
- Average adult weight: 2,260.0 lbs.
- Habitat: Arctic Ocean
1. Ocean quahog clam
- Oldest recorded: 507 years
- Average adult weight: 0.5 lbs.
- Habitat: Northern Atlantic Ocean