Many things are older than sharks, including simple organisms like sponges, ancient invertebrates like horseshoe crabs, and fish lineages such as coelacanths, with some groups like cyanobacteria existing for billions of years, while modern sharks themselves appeared around 400 million years ago, making creatures like crinoids, sea anemones, and even early jawless fish (hagfish) predecessors.
A deep-sea sponge can break the records of all living animals. It can live up to a thousand years. In fact, a study revealed that the oldest of the sponge samples collected lived for 11,000 years. During this time, the earth has just recovered from the Ice Age.
Aquatic animals. Glass sponges found in the East China Sea and Southern Ocean have been estimated to be more than 10,000 years old. Although this may be an overestimate, this is likely the longest lived animal on Earth.
The Greenland shark (Somniosus microcephalus) is the animal known to live up to 400 years, holding the record as the longest-living vertebrate, with some individuals estimated to be even older, potentially over 500 years. These deep-sea sharks thrive in the cold Arctic and North Atlantic waters, growing extremely slowly (about 1 cm/year) and reaching sexual maturity around 150 years old, contributing to their remarkable lifespan.
Greenland Shark: The Shark That’s Twice As Old As America
Which animal can live 5000 years?
Studies show that some corals can live for up to 5,000 years, making them the longest living animals on Earth. Some corals can live for up to 5,000 years, making them the longest living animals on Earth.
Yes, Greenland sharks can live up to 500 years or even longer, making them the longest-living vertebrates known, with studies estimating lifespans of 272 to over 500 years for some individuals, explaining their incredibly slow metabolism and late sexual maturity (around 150 years). Scientists use radiocarbon dating of eye lens proteins to determine their age, as they lack hard tissues for traditional age-counting.
The hydrozoan Turritopsis dohrnii, an animal about 4.5 millimetres wide and tall (likely making it smaller than the nail on your little finger), can actually reverse its life cycle. It has been dubbed the immortal jellyfish.
The Greenland shark has the longest known lifespan of all vertebrate species. It is estimated that the species has a lifespan of at least 272 years, with the oldest individual estimated to be 392 ± 120 years of age.
Bobi (Portuguese pronunciation: [bɔˈβi], 11 May 1992 – 21 October 2023) was a male purebred Rafeiro do Alentejo dog cared for by Leonel Costa of Conqueiros, Leiria, Portugal. Bobi was claimed by his caretaker to be the oldest dog to ever live and the first dog on record to reach 30 years.
The animal known for living only about 5 minutes as an adult is the mayfly, specifically the female of the species Dolania americana, which emerges from its aquatic nymph stage to mate and lay eggs before dying, with its entire adult life focused solely on reproduction, as they lack functional mouths and digestive systems. While most adult mayflies live a day or less, this species holds the record for the shortest adult lifespan.
Pelycosaurs, like Dimetrodon, were early reptiles that thrived during the Permian period, before dinosaurs. Therapsids were mammal-like reptiles with powerful jaws that evolved during the early Permian period. Archosaurs were diverse reptiles that led to the first dinosaurs and still include crocodiles today.
Ocean quahogs (Arctica islandica) are among the longest-living animals known, with lifespans exceeding 500 years. One famous specimen, nicknamed “Ming,” was determined to be about 507 years old, and scientists used growth rings in its shell to reconstruct historical ocean conditions over centuries.
Sharks have swum in the oceans for almost 450 million years, which makes them far older than dinosaurs, trees and even the stars in the skies. That's not all, though – they've also lived through every major mass-extinction event and the ocean temperature changes that came with each one.
While their diet consists mostly of various fish species, they have also been found to eat seals, small whales, and even drowned land animals like horses and reindeer! Due to the large size of Greenland sharks (adults can reach lengths up to 6 meters (20 feet), they have no natural known predators.
The Ancient Mariner: The Greenland Shark's Unparalleled Lifespan The Greenland shark holds the astounding title of the longest-living vertebrate on Earth, with individuals estimated to live for up to 500 years.
While, as shown with creatures such as hydra and Planarian worms, it is indeed possible for a creature to be biologically immortal, these are animals which are physiologically very different from humans, and it is not known if something comparable will ever be possible for humans.
Lobsters don't show typical signs of senescence. For them, life just goes on until an inevitable end. Unlike people, as they age, lobsters do not weaken, and they continue to grow, feed as normal and reproduce. They can also regenerate limbs if they lose them.
The International Union for Conservation of Nature lists the white shark as a vulnerable species globally and critically endangered regionally in European and Mediterranean waters. As of 2025, it is estimated to have declined in numbers by 30–49% over the past 159 years.
𝘚𝘰𝘮𝘯𝘪𝘰𝘴𝘶𝘴 𝘈𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘶𝘴 (Southern Sleeper Shark) - 490 meters deep. Another unexpected encounter on our recent expedition to Antarctica! Despite the name, this species is not usually found this far south in Antarctic waters, in fact, sharks in general are not associated with Antarctica.
