Key points from article :
Greenland sharks are the world’s longest-lived vertebrates, with radiocarbon dating of their eye tissue revealing lifespans of up to 400–500 years. That means the oldest individuals swimming today may have been born during the Roman Empire or before the fall of the Byzantine Empire, giving them a biological timescale that spans human history. Their frozen Arctic habitat and extremely slow growth — just one centimeter per year — are central to their longevity.
Research in Frontiers in Marine Science shows that these sharks mature exceptionally late, with females reaching reproductive age only at about 150 years. Their slow metabolism, low-oxygen lifestyle, and glacial movement help conserve energy in one of the planet’s harshest environments. Another study, published in Toxicon, found that their tissues are rich in TMAO, a compound that protects cells from pressure and freezing but makes the flesh toxic unless fermented — a technique long known to Indigenous Greenlandic communities who prepare it as hákarl.
Rarely seen in the wild, Greenland sharks drift through deep Arctic waters with clouded eyes and centuries-old scars, scavenging seals, fish, and even the occasional reindeer or polar bear carcass. Their ability to survive long periods without food makes them perfectly adapted to the sparse, icy ecosystem.
Placed alongside other “ultrasurvivors” — including the 200-year-old bowhead whale, 500-year-old ocean quahog, 4,800-year-old bristlecone pine, the rejuvenating “immortal jellyfish,” and deep-sea sponges that can live 10,000 years — the Greenland shark stands out as a living link to deep time. If some individuals truly began life during the Roman era, they have silently witnessed humanity’s journey from iron tools to satellites, making them one of the most extraordinary animals on Earth.
