Paleontologists have discovered the heart of the 380-million-year-old jawed fish Arthrodire placodermia in the Kimberley region of Australia. Thus, it has the oldest heart position ever found and is very well preserved.
Paleontologists from Curtin University in Australia found a “beautifully preserved” heart alongside the fossilized stomach, intestines and liver. Scientists have identified the fossils in the Gogo Formation in Western Australia’s Kimberley region. The muscular organ comes from a fossilized jawed fish that swam in Devonian-era waters between 419 million and 359 million years ago.
The findings, published in the journal Science, show that the organs came from the body of a fish from the arthrodire family, an extinct group of armored fish with anatomies similar to a modern shark, according to the scientists.
Extraordinary!
Lead researcher Professor Kate Trinajstic added that it is “very rare” to find such well-preserved soft tissues of ancient species, adding that their findings are “extraordinary”.
Looks Like a Shark Heart
“As a paleontologist working on fossils for over 20 years, I was really surprised to find a beautifully preserved 3-D heart in a 380-million-year-old ancestor. The hearts of these fish are literally in their mouths and under their mouths. The gills are just like sharks today,” said Trinajstic. Used.
