Which animal is the longest-lived vertebrate known to science?

The Greenland shark is the longest-lived vertebrate known to science, with some individuals estimated to be more than 400 years old.

Scientists estimate Greenland shark ages by examining radiocarbon levels in proteins formed in the eye lens before birth. A study published in 2016 estimated a 5-metre female at about 392 years old, with an uncertainty range extending beyond 500 years.

These sharks live in the cold waters of the North Atlantic and Arctic oceans. Their extremely slow growth, often less than 1 centimetre per year, helps explain their remarkable longevity. They may not reach sexual maturity until roughly 150 years old.

The Greenland shark is sometimes confused with the Pacific sleeper shark, another slow-moving deep-water species. The bowhead whale is exceptionally long-lived among mammals, but it does not surpass the most extreme Greenland shark estimates.