4th International Coelacanth Symposium
I had the opportunity to participate in the subject symposium organized by Aquamarine Fukushima (Fukushima Marine Science Museum) held at Jōsai University in Tōkyō.
Here's the program of the symposium:
I'm a lay person. Surrounded by researchers, I was effectively an alien👽 but I enjoyed the symposium.
2025/01/11 (Sat.)
The morphometric history of the coelacanth fishes
(by Richard Cloutier)
It was a very enlightening talk on
Coelacanth phylogeny
Coelacanth disparity
Coelacanth morphometry
Temporal distribution of Mawsonia gigas Woodward, 1907: fact or taxonomic problem?
(by Paulo M. Brito)
It was a very interesting talk on taxonomic problems on Mawsonia gigas with providing explanation on several species such as Mawsonia brasiliensis, Mawsonia lavocati, Mawsonia tegamensis, and Mawsonia soba...
Pulmonary vasculature in coelacanths provides insights into the evolution of air-breathing organs in vertebrates
(by Camila Cupello)
I'm glad to have the opportunity to listen to her presentation.
In the following image, "Actinistia" is the class (綱) Coelacanths belong to. Sarcopterygii is the clade.
Raising awareness about coelacanth conservation in Comoros and research project on coelacanth reproduction
(by Gaël Clément)
It was a very enlightening talk in the context of raising awareness about coelacanth conservation in Comoros, showing various photos on CCC 309 (by Coelacanth Conservation Council numbering) captured on 19th of November 2019, a dissection of which resulted in showing 18 unborn coelacanth babies. The poster to enlighten fishermen in Comoros not to fish coelacanths was very impressive explicitly telling "Cut the fishing line after catching a coelacanth!".
Research highlights from 25 years of South African coelacanth surveys
(by Kerry Sink)
She started her talk by saying "she was at the best place in the best time as a young scientist". If my memory is correct, the following individual is No.26 Eric ('eyelashes') shown in her talk:
In this way, she talked about individuals of coelacanths in South Africa with number, nickname and characteristics.
The Importance of Establishing Offshore MPAs to Protect Coelacanth Habitat in the Coral Triangle Region
(by Augy Syahailatua)
I learned CTI (Coral Triangle Initiative) & ITF (Indonesian Throughflow). In general, the presentation was very informative.
2025/01/12 (Sun.)
410 million years of (morphological evolution and disparity of) coelacanths
(by Alice M. Clement)
She introduced a new species of primitive coelacanth from a fossil found in the Frasnian (late Devonian) Gogo Formation in Western Australia. It is named Ngamugawi wirngarri in Gooniyandi, an Australian Aboriginal language now spoken by about 200 Gooniyandi people in the Kimberley region of Western Australia.
Deciphering the fin-to-limb evolution with special attention to the development of the brachial plexus
(by Tatsuya Hirasawa)
The most intriguing presentation in the symposium with the following statement:
"Limbs evolved only once".
How the first dorsal fin of coelacanths folds and the nomenclature of the median fins
(by Yoshitaka Yabumoto)
= Omitted =
A Triassic coelacanth from the Banff region of Alberta, Canada
(by Shinya Miyata)
= Omitted =
New insights on coelacanth habitats at mesophotic depths in Eastern Indonesia
(by Alexis Chappuis)
His talk on "mesophotic coral ecosystem" was highly enlightening and on UNSEEN expeditions in Maluku in 2022 and in North Maluku in 2024 was so attractive.
[NOTE] Mesophotic coral ecosystems exist in low light—"meso" means middle and "photic" refers to light. Mesophotic coral ecosystems are found in tropical and subtropical regions at depths ranging from almost 30 m to over 150 m below the ocean's surface. The dominant communities providing structural habitat in the mesophotic zone are corals, sponges, and algae.
Coelacanth Survey in Indonesia
(by Masamitsu Iwata)
I learned the latest expedition which took place in August 2024 in Indonesia would be covered by TV program "NHK special" currently scheduled on 2nd March 2025.
I don't have a clear memory, but I do remember my mother taking me to the aquarium at Yomiuriland in 1967 to see coelacanth. That was the year my family moved from Tachikawa to Itabashi.
Incidentally, Jōsai University has Oishi Fossils Gallery of Mizuta Memorial Museum (水田記念博物館大石化石ギャラリー), which is introduced in the following superb article by 美原さつき様：
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