A Fish Caught in Time: The Search for the Coelacanth

By Samantha Weinberg

Book Overview

A gripping story of obsession, adventure and the search for our oldest surviving ancestor - 400 million years old - a four-limbed dinofish

In 1938, Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer, a young South African museum curator, caught sight of a specimen among a fisherman's trawl that she knew was special. With limb-like protuberances culminating in fins the strange fish was unlike anything she had ever seen. The museum board members dismissed it as a common lungfish, but when Marjorie eventually contacted Professor JLB Smith, he immediately identified her fish as a coelacanth - a species known to have lived 400 million years ago, and believed by many scientists to be the evolutionary missing link - the first creature to crawl out of the sea. Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer had thus made the century's greatest zoological discovery. But Smith needed a live or frozen specimen to verify the discovery, so began his search for another coelacanth, to which he devoted his life.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1857029070
• ISBN13: 9781857029079
• Release Date: May 2000
• Publisher: Fourth Estate
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 0.50 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.0" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

Who (or what) are we??

I highly recommend anyone interested in evolution, physical anthropology, or interested in fish for that matter. The book does not go deep into the anatomy or evolutionary history of the coelacanth, but delves into the history of the difficult search, knowledge, and evolution of this enlightening fish. This book is extremely well written. Samantha Weinberg has succeeded in what many authors would fail at writing. The first fossil was discovered in 1839. The actual living fish was found 100 years later by a young 20-something year old Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer in 1938. By the end of this book one should be hooked on finding more information about the coelacanth and evolution (they give birth to live fish!). By reading this book one can also better appreciate the evolution of scientific exploration as well. If further interested about coelacanths, visit dinofish.com. . .

A history of discovery.

Weinberg's book is a fascinating account of the discovery of the most famous "living fossil," the coelacanth (Latimeria chalumnae) of the coasts of Africa and Madagascar in the 1930s. But the author does not confine herself to that intial discovery, and includes an account of subsequent finds, as well as an overview of the significance of the coelacanth to evolutionary biology. A wonderfully written book, great for readers of all ages (it might be an ideal book for getting a younger reader interested in science). Weinberg has also included an extensive second appendix, directing those who'd like to see a coelacanth up close to museums that have specimens in their collections.

Easy Science; Fascinating Read

"A Fish Caught in Time" is one of those slim books you pick up to read because it sounds somewhat interesting and will add to your volume of knowledge. How can any book about a fish first 'discovered' sixty years ago be really very interesting? Well, it is not only fascinating, it is the kind of book you keep putting down so you won't finish it too fast--this one you don't want to end. Samantha Weinberg chronicles the extremely unlikely sets of coincidences that first led the world to realize there was a living fossil--a fish that had been declared extinct 85 million years ago. The people involved become very human and likeable. Their tenacity and genius as well as their frailities are kindly portrayed. The politics which surrounded collection and examination of further specimens are discussed with tactful realism. The technical scientific study of this incredible fish is presented in an informative and lively way. The reader learns truly fascinating, mind-boggling facts about this fossil in ways that excite the mind. When details about skeletons and DNA hold the lay reader enthralled, it's clear Weinberg has written with passion about her subject. The Coelacanth went from being understood as an extinct fish found in many fossils to a fish, alive and well, with its organs, skeletal, blood and nerve systems providing incredible and valuable information about the development of the entire animal kingdom that probably couldn't be found any other way. Last but not least, A Fish Caught in Time, different than most 'nature' books does not leave the reader with a sad sense of helplessness. It leaves one with an uplifted sense of awe and with love for this wonderful fish of 100 million years ago.

A well-written tale of discovery.

This is a superbly researched and written history of the coelacanth and the people who have pursued it. Less technical than Keith Thomson's equally valuable book on the topic, this volume is filled with details about the effect this unique fish has had on those caught in its prehistoric aura. Weinberg includes a thorough account of the discovery of the second population in Indonesia, along with evidence for other populations. A must read for all who are interested in marine discovery and conservation.Matt Bille Author, Rumors of Existence

A Fish Caught In Time

Samantha Weinberg has written a wonderful book outlining the history of the coelacanth. This "living fossil" fish, which predates the dinosaurs, was believed to have been extinct for millions of years until one was pulled from the sea in 1938. This incredible discovery has been referred to as the "number one zoological find of the twentieth century." The coelacanth, with it's primitive limbs, is a fascinating member of our evolutionary past. Much more than just a fish story, A FISH CAUGHT IN TIME tells an exciting tale of the many individuals involved in expanding our knowledge of the coelacanth--and hopefully preventing it's extinction as we enter the twenty-first century. This is one of those special books that was hard to put down and ended far too soon!