This is getting old: longevity records for animals

[DavidBrown]

This may have been discussed prior to my moving into the Zoochat neighborhood, but I'm curious about longevity records for species in zoos and aquariums.

The Guinness Book of World Records claims that the oldest known Asian elephant in a zoo (and maybe in the world?) was an 86 year old elephant in the Taiwan Zoo: Oldest elephant

Does this seem on the level? The oldest known wild elephants seem to last into their 60s. Does anybody know verified records of age for some of these species that are famous for long life?

African elephants
Gorillas
Chimpanzees
Orang-utans
Galapagos tortoises
Any other turtle species
Crocodiles
Parrots

What bird species live the longest?

What reptiles live the longest besides turtles? Are there any lizards that can live past 100?

Some people think that whales and some fish species like rockfish can live 100+ years. Does anybody know how old the oldest known individuals of marine species are?

What are the oldest known animals in zoos today? The San Diego Zoo still has several Galapagos tortoises that were collected in the 1920s.

 

[Tim May]

For anybody interested in longevity records of zoo animals I thoroughly recommend the fascinating book “Longevity of Mammals in Captivity; from the Living Collections of the World” (Richard Weigl, 2005).

I have been told that the author is planning a subsequent volume on birds.

Also well worth reading is Major S. S. Flower’s paper “Contributions to our Knowledge of the Duration of Life in Vertebrate Animals, V. Mammals” (Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London; 1931). Flower had previously contributed articles on other vertebrate groups too.

 

[Chlidonias]

also The Guinness Book of Animal Facts and Feats by Gerald Wood has loads of longevity records. Its a bit old now but still a fascinating book.

It seems you can access it entirely online here: Animal facts and feats : Wood, Gerald L : Free Download & Streaming : Internet Archive

 

[Pootle]

One species rarely found in a zoo, which I was surprised to hear has such a long life in some cases is the European Eel Anguilla anguilla, born in the sea, living out the rest of its years in rivers or stillwaters. Studies of the otolith bone from a specimen showed it to be over 106 years old. Some sturgeon species can also live to a ripe old age too, 150 plus I believe.
For mammals Bowhead whales seem to be the longest lived species.

 

[condor]

Are there any lizards that can live past 100?

Tuatara, if you include that among lizards

What bird species live the longest?

Captive: Andean condor or large parrots (macaws, amazons, cockatoos and African grays) at c. 80. However, If you believe the background story for the sulphur-crested cockatoo 'Cocky Bennett' or the blue-and-yellow macaw 'Charlie', the record is 100+. At least the claim for 'Charlie' is rather questionable. Longest documented in the wild are royal albatross and Laysan albatross at 60+

Some people think that whales and some fish species like rockfish can live 100+ years. Does anybody know how old the oldest known individuals of marine species are?

Several rockfish species have been documented at ages above 100, a few above 150 years, and at least one (rougheye rockfish) above 200. This is mainly via otoliths, similar to counting growth rings in trees, or through isotope analysis. Very old fish specimens have also been documented in some other groups, e.g. Hoplostethus roughies have been known to reach 150, Allocyttus oreos 140 and sturgeon 125. There are many fish species where virtually nothing is known about the age and it is likely many deep-water species live very long lives, possibly even surpassing the rockfish. Even in the species we do know reasonably well, it is likely we don't know their true maximum age: Rockfish, sturgeon and Hoplostethus are all heavily fished and for a specimen to survive to the true maximum age would be very difficult. Some sharks are believed to surpass 100 years and the largest Greenland sharks may well be around 200 based on what is known about their remarkably slow growth rates. The famous story of 'Hanako', a koi carp that suppposedly reached 226 years, is interesting but I wouldn't bet on the accuracy of that claim without seeing the scientific data. (I've been unable to find an actual scientific publication with it; only second hand information that a professor examined some scales from 'Hanako' in the 1960s.)

Though 200 years is remarkable for any living organism, fish don't match the oldest clams/mussels such as Margaritifera margaritifera (c. 250 years) and Arctica islandica (507 years). Some sponges, which strictly speaking also are animals, have been known to reach several thousand years. But no one can match Turritopsis, named the 'immortal jellyfish' in some popular literature because they potentially can live forever.

 

[BeardsleyZooFan]

What bird species live the longest?

The record for the oldest Andean Condor is 79, almost 80 years old. The individual was named Thaao, and died at Connecticut's Beardsley Zoo. Beardsley Zoo also holds likely the oldest howler monkey in the world; Zuele, a female Black Howler that's 26 years old.
Some other longevity records can be viewed on this thread; http://www.zoochat.com/2/record-animals-your-zoo-293471/

 

[Jana]

Flamingos also belong to the long lived bird species list. Oldest known is the Greater one in Adelaide, imported 79 years ago and still alive.

The problem with flamingos is they were easily imported in big numbers but till at least 1950es they were not suviving long after import in most zoos, due to inappropriate diet, housing, handling etc. This is the reason you will find hardly any captive flamingos over 60. But with vastly improved conditions, especially in last 30 years or so, the longevity records for all flamingo species will probably grow significantly.

When I check flamingo mortality rates in my local zoos, it is 1,9% annually (sample is +700 flamingos of 4 species over last 5 years, chick mortality in first callendar year excluded). That would hint an average expected longevity of over 50 years, with exclusion of Lesser flamingos from the mix it increases to almost 60 years. Therefore I personally would guess the maximum possible longevity for flamingos somewhere around 100 - 120 years.