Record of longevity of a person in the world. Which animals have the longest life span

Classification World Organization Health defines centenarians as people who have crossed the 90-year mark. In comparison with the total population of the Earth, especially those who managed to live up to 100 years old, make up only a small fraction.

Gerontologists say that nature, that is, for the human body, 100 years is not the limit. And it means a full and active life.

The life expectancy of Jeanne-Louise Calment from France is listed in the Guinness Book of Records - 122 years. She was born on February 21, 1875, and died in 1997, outliving not only her children, but also her grandchildren. Madame Kalman is known to science, information about her is documented.

Of the male representatives, Shigechiyo Izumi, a resident of Japan, who was born on June 29, 1865, and died on February 21, 1986, lived two years less than her. His name is mentioned in the 1871 census. However, there are discussions about the duration of his life, since the documents unambiguously confirming it, apparently, have not been preserved. The second after the Japanese is considered a resident of Denmark, Christian Mortensen, who was born on August 16, 1882, and died on April 25, 1998, although the documents about his birth do not raise any doubts.

Which person lived the longest?

In Vietnam, during the 1991 census, a man was found aged 142 years. Found in Vietnam and a woman born in 1847, the age of her children has exceeded the 100-year milestone.

The life expectancy of Javier Pereira from Colombia is 169 years. When he was 146 years old, a commemorative postage stamp with his picture.

A postage stamp was also issued in honor of the centenarian from Soviet Union Muhammad Eyvazov, at that time he was 148 years old. He died in 1959 after living three more years.

A reporter from Cairo wrote of a man who clearly remembered the opening of the Suez Canal to ships on November 17, 1869. At the time of the story, according to this man, he was 195 years old.

In 1964, a resident of Turkey Khancer Nine died, who lived for 169 years.

Antisa Khvichava from Georgia was born on July 8, 1880 and died on September 30, 2012, at the age of 133.

The official US record holder is Sarah Knauss, born September 24, 1880 and died December 30, 1999.

Most old resident planet - Li Ching-Yun from China, who was born in 1677 and died at the age of 256 in 1933. Li's birth data cannot be verified, but in 1930 records were found congratulating the Imperial Government of China on his 150 and 200 years anniversary. Whether this is so, no one can say now. In any case, Lee Ching-Yun died at a ripe old age, having lived long life.

Oddly enough, but rare centenarians died of old age. The cause of death was almost always diseases - infectious, cardiovascular, oncological. By the way, among 100-year-old centenarians, there are often big lovers alcohol, cigarettes and coffee.

Throughout history, there have been people whose life expectancy has exceeded the most optimistic expectations.

All of these people lived to be over 115 years old, which means they can be called super centenarians (people who lived to at least 110 years old). Some of them drank, smoked all their lives, and some were very healthy lifestyle life and everyone went down in history, having their own secret of longevity.

There are several people, such as the Japanese Shigechiyo Izumi, who, according to some estimates, has reached 120 years old, as well as Shirali Muslimov, an Azerbaijani shepherd, who has reached the age of supposedly 168 years old - centenarians who have reached an unprecedented old age. But these cases have not been confirmed.

Here are 10 super centenarians whose lifespan has been tested.

10. Christian Mortensen (1882-1998)

Danish-American long-liver Christian Mortensen, who lived 115 years, 252 days, is considered the oldest man from those registered. He was born on August 16, 1882 and died on April 25, 1998.

Mortenson is unusual not only because he was a man (only 9.8 percent of confirmed supercentenarians are male), but also because he smoked several cigars a week for 95 years of his life. Also most life he was single, which usually negatively affects life expectancy. But Mortenson became an exception to the rule here, having been married for only 10 years.

This amazing man immigrated to America in 1903, where he worked as a tailor and milkman. So what is the secret to longevity, according to Mortenson himself? "Friends, good cigars, consumption a large number good water, abstaining from alcohol, an optimistic outlook on life and singing will ensure you a long life,” he argued.

9. Maggie Pauline Barnes (1882 -1998)

Maggie Pauline Barnes was born into slavery on March 6, 1882. She died on January 19, 1998 at the age of 115 years and 319 days. Although little is known about her, her age alone speaks volumes. amazing life. Maggie not only endured the hardships of slavery in the US, but outlived 11 of her 15 children.

The woman died of complications from a minor infection in her leg. Her story is all the more surprising because at the beginning of the 20th century, the average life expectancy was 47 years for white Caucasians and 40-42 years for African Americans. And while that gap is shrinking more and more, Bruns did the impossible by living 75 years more than average life expectancy.

8. Bessie Cooper (1896 -)

Bessie Cooper was born on August 26, 1896. Most recently, she celebrated her 116th birthday, becoming the oldest living person in the world. When asked what the secret to her long life was, she replied, "I don't poke my nose into other people's business," and added, "And I don't eat junk food."

Bessie's life spans three centuries, she survived two world wars and many other historical events.

Cooper worked as a school teacher, and after her husband's death at the age of 68, she lived alone on the family farm. At 105, she moved into a nursing home.

7. Elizabeth Bolden (1890 - 2006)

Elizabeth Bolden lived from August 15, 1890 to December 11, 2006. She was 116 years 118 days old at the time of her death.

She was born into a family of freed slaves in Tennessee, USA, and her life was not easy. Her genes for longevity were apparently not passed on to her children and only two of Elizabeth's seven children were alive at the time of her death. And yet, some of her descendants may be able to put new record longevity. When she died, she left behind more than 500 direct descendants, including 75 great-great-great-great-grandchildren.

Though Boden herself hasn't spoken much since her stroke in 2004, she happily celebrated her 116th birthday by tasting two of her favorite treats: ice cream and candy.

6. Thain Ikai (1879 -1995)

At incredible duration life at 116 years 175 days, Tein Ikai is both the oldest confirmed representative in Japan and in Asia. The woman was born on January 18, 1879 in a family of farmers in the city of Kansei in Japan. She married at 20 and had 4 children, whom she had outlived by the time of her death on July 12, 1995.

Thane enjoyed doing embroidery and pottery. She ate mostly rice porridge, which, combined with the traditional Japanese diet, may have helped protect her from heart disease and cancer.

An autopsy after her death showed that the centenarian died of kidney failure. So far, she is the only super-long-liver who has undergone an autopsy.

5. Maria Capovilla (1889 - 2006)

Ecuadorian centenarian Maria Capovilla was born on September 14, 1889, the same year that the Eiffel Tower was presented to the public. Having lived to 116 years 347 days, she became the oldest South American woman in history, as well as the most long-lived person in southern hemisphere. Capovilla died on August 27, 2006, just under a month short of her 117th birthday.

She was the embodiment of health and energy almost to the end of her life, although she drank a little alcohol, but never smoked. She was born in the family of a colonel and lived among the elite of Ecuador, and in 1917 she married an officer, an Italian by birth, Antonio Capovilla.

When she was 99 years old, she suddenly fell ill and she was practically buried in catholic church. But she survived, and after that she walked without a stick, read newspapers, watched TV and was in good health. Three of her five children were alive at the time of her death, and they were 78, 80 and 81 years old.

4. Maria Louise Mailer (1880 - 1998)

Maria Louise Mailer was 117 years 230 days old when she died on April 16, 1998. Interestingly, at the time of her death, one of her sons lived in the same nursing home as herself, and her daughter was 90 years old.

The French-Canadian centenarian was born in Quebec, Canada on August 29, 1880. Her first husband died of pneumonia when she was 30 years old. After that, Mailer moved to the border between Quebec and Ontario, where she met her second husband, Hector Mailer.

The woman believed that her longevity was due to hard work and this is not surprising, given that she had 10 children and two marriages. Also, the centenarian liked to occasionally drink a glass of wine, and quit smoking when she was 90 years old, 27 years before her death.

3. Lucy Hanna (1875 -1993)

Lucy Hanna has never been honored with the title of oldest person in history, simply because she lived at the same time as Jeanne Calment, who received this title.

Despite this, Hannah lived to a deep 117 years 248 days and is the oldest African American and the third the oldest person in history.

She was born in Alabama, USA on July 16, 1875. She married John Hann in 1901 and had 8 children, 6 of whom she survived. Hannah's two sisters lived to be 100 years old, while her mother lived to be 99 years old.

2. Sarah Knauss (1880 -1999)

Sarah Knauss is the second oldest person in history. She died at the age of 119 years 97 days. This amazing woman was born on September 24, 1880 and died on December 30, 1999, only a few days short of the 21st century. Obviously, Sarah didn't care. When she was told that she had become the oldest person in the world, she replied: "So what."

Her daughters described their mother as incredibly calm and undisturbed. Perhaps this was the secret of her long life, since excessive stress negatively affects human health.

Knauss survived 7 American wars, the Great Depression and the death of her husband after 64 years of marriage. At the time of her death, she was already older than the Brooklyn Bridge and the Statue of Liberty in the United States.

1. Jeanne Calment (1875 - 1997)

Jeanne Calment is the oldest person who ever lived on Earth, and so far no one has been able to beat her record of 122 years 164 days. She was born in Arles, France on February 21, 1875 and died on August 4, 1997. In her lifetime, she witnessed the invention of the automobile, cinema, stainless steel, television, and airplanes.

Surprisingly, she even met Vincent van Gogh when she was 13, whom she described as "dirty, unkempt and scowling."

Kalman, like Sarah Knauss, had "immunity from stress." She also boasted wit and at every birthday she announced a new secret to longevity.

The centenarian rode a bike and drank port wine until she was 100 years old, and also smoked almost to death. She claimed that laughter, physical activity and a strong stomach helped her live to a ripe old age. And her best advice there was a saying: "If you can't do anything about it, don't worry."

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The super-long-liver, who lived in China, lived to be 256 years old.

1) Facts from the life of Li Qingyong.

Date of birth varies according to different sources, but there is no strong deviation in the dates, just a few years. So in Russian sources, the date of birth is in 1677 (Li himself claimed that he was born in 1736), in the city of Qijianxiang, Sichuan province. But it becomes not clear where the date 1677 came from then? According to Professor Wu Chung-tse from the University of Chengdu in 1930, he discovered the Imperial Records marked 1827, in which the government of the "Celestial Empire" congratulated Li Qingyong on his 150th birthday, from which it was concluded that he was born in 1677 year. Further in 1877, the Chinese government in again sent their solemn congratulations for Lee, but this time they congratulated her on her 200th birthday. In his native province, he lived long enough, learning the secrets of martial arts and longevity. He was also helped by medicinal herbs, which he drank daily, unfortunately not a single recipe for his magical elixirs has survived to this day. In addition to martial arts, Li Qingyong practiced gymnastics and breathing exercises. According to experts, it was respiratory exercises that helped him to live to such an advanced age. Later, at the age of 71, he leaves for Kaixian Province to become a military adviser.

2) Myths about the centenarian.

One of Li's students wrote in his diaries that at the age of one hundred and thirty Li went to famous centenarian a hermit who at that time had reached the respectable age of five hundred years (the figure, of course, is highly doubtful, the Chinese;)) who told him the secrets of body and breath gymnastics, a diet of nutrition with medicinal decoctions of herbs. As you know, the East Asian peoples ate more marine and vegetable products, which did not allow the accumulation of harmful animal fats, which had such a detrimental effect on the vascular and cardiac systems. Perhaps this is the secret of their longevity.

3) History of photography.

In 1927, Li Qingyong was summoned to Wanxian Province to see the governor. Seeing such a vigorous and full of life old man, the governor was infinitely surprised. It was at that moment that the only photograph of the Chinese super-long-liver was taken. But as it became known later they were last years life of Li Qingyong. Returning to his province after visiting an official, he died six years later.

4) A few records of life.

After the death of Li Qingyong, the general was very interested in the life and longevity of the latter and ordered that records be made that shed light on the life and work of the centenarian. Materials were collected, interviews were held with relatives. Everyone said that he was always old and was even friends with some of the grandfathers. He took the secret of his longevity to the grave and it is unlikely that anyone will be able to find out the truth.

5) Li Qingyong's secret of longevity.

According to his relatives, he always did exercises and breathing exercises, which apparently became the reason for such a long life, but the most important thing Li Qingyong taught his relatives was to remain calm, “you need to keep your heart at rest and sleep like in last time he said.

6) Well, a very long life.

Yes, indeed, the age of 256 years is the longest period of life on earth, the only thing that has not been documented by anyone.

The official record holder for longevity is Omar Abas, a resident of Malaysia, who died at the age of 144. And lived 112 years less than Li Qingyong.

Having survived 23 of his 24 wives, Lee saw the birth of not only his children, but also grandchildren, great-grandchildren, great-great-grandchildren, and God only knows what the next generation of descendants.

Unfortunately, due to the lack of information in different countries Li Qingyong's official dates of birth differ.

Health 10/17/2016

Dear readers, today on the blog I want to talk about the phenomenon of longevity. Gerontologists and other specialists involved in the study of the capabilities of the human body assure that we live criminally little. The human body from birth is programmed for 100-120 years of not just existence, but active being. That is, we live on average 30-40% less than the time allotted by nature. Why? There are many reasons, but now we will talk about them only indirectly. Using the example of unique long-lived people, we will see what gives people the strength to go through life for so long, and often, and fruitfully.

Who is considered long-livers?

Remember old movie Makropulos' Remedy based on a play by Karel Capek? The author put philosophical question: But is immortality such a blessing for us, to which a person sometimes carelessly strives? Well, if not immortality, but to live a very long time - this is also sometimes heavy burden. “Old age is not a joy,” sometimes people of retirement age sigh.

From the point of view of the "champions" of longevity, the centenarians of the world from the Guinness Book of Records, they are very young, but tired of life. However, there are enough such “old men” even among 30-year-olds. Therefore, we will talk here, first of all, not about long years in general, but about how individual people manage to accomplish the almost impossible: to remain both at 100 years old and at a more respectable age in a clear mind and in physical health.

To begin with, it is worth deciding on who should be considered centenarians?

It is generally accepted to refer to this category of people whose age is more than 90 years. This figure is enshrined in the WHO classification.

Needless to say, there are many such people in the world. Even in our country, traditionally criticized for low life expectancy, about 350 people have exceeded this age limit. And every year the number of "elders" continues to grow.

The second essential point: whether a person has official documents confirming his date of birth. This is more difficult, after all, the world has experienced two global wars and many other cataclysms over the past century, and purely family problems sometimes lead to the loss of such papers. Therefore, there are so-called verified centenarians of the world and unofficial, conjectural. The latter have to provide some indirect evidence of their records.

An indisputable fact: there are many more women who are centenarians than men. This, too, is baffling scientists. Although in general the life expectancy of the "strong" sex is almost universally less than that of their fairer halves. There are quite objective reasons for that. The main one is the one on the surface: they more diligently shorten their lives with bad habits, and sometimes with excessive workload.

Phenomenon of place: Japan, small villages in Italy and a tribe in India

The question of binding this phenomenon to the terrain is also interesting. Why do people live much longer in some countries and certain regions than in others? Ecology, the level of medicine and social benefits, food traditions - these and many other factors are taken into account by researchers. But these statistics do not give exact and comprehensive answers. The secret still remains.

It is well known that many people of a very respectable age live in mountainous areas planets (but not too high, where the air is already very thin). Georgia, Azerbaijan, Abkhazia and other territories former USSR marked by this advantage, also many of the world's longest-lived people live in Japan.

In the Land of the Rising Sun, more than 40 thousand citizens have passed the 100-year mark. The UN has made a forecast that by 2050, if the trend continues, there will already be a million centenarians in this country. This even causes fears of those in power: the nation is aging, the percentage of older Japanese in total strength population is constantly increasing.

86% of the age record holders are women, and Japan is no exception. If you look through the lists of official centenarians of the world, then there we will see many representatives of this country. Let's say Misao Okawa passed away last year at the age of 117 years and 27 days. And now the living Nabi Tajima on October 16, 2016 was 116 years and 72 days old.

Scientists from Italy have recently published the results of research on the phenomenon of the inhabitants of the village of Acciaroli. 300 people there are over 100 years old. Moreover, they work and live actively, enjoying all the joys of life, including sexual ones! You can read about this in And here you can also learn a lot of interesting things about how modern medicine can help everyone who seeks to extend their earthly path.

But here's what scientists can't unravel, so it's a mystery. We will not find the names of its representatives in the ratings of the long-livers of the world of the book of records, probably, they simply have no time to deal with formalities. But, having lived for more than 110 years (and, without exception!) These natives see perfectly, have excellent teeth without signs of caries, and generally have enviable health.

The only secret that is visible to the naked eye is the dietary habits of the tribe members. They eat fruits and raw vegetables, and eat meat only on major holidays. They prepare juices for future use, drink them in the most difficult times, when a new harvest or weather has not arrived in time, nature presents unpleasant surprises.

Other distinguishing feature hunza - constant physical activity, hardening, brought up by the habit of swimming in cold water. 60-year-old women of the tribe calmly give birth to healthy strong men and live, in the full sense of the word, happily ever after. By the way, this is precisely what may be the most important factor in their resilience: impenetrable optimism!

Other record-breaking countries for the number of centenarians

The same rule is followed by the long-livers of the world today, living in Abkhazia. There long term life surprises no one, almost 3% of the population in their passports have dates of birth of the beginning of the last century. " Evil people they don’t live long” - this is one of the most common Abkhaz sayings.

More than 80 thousand people in the United States also belong to centenarians. Everything is different here: not brilliant environmental indicators, a high pace of existence with inevitable stresses. But the country can boast of a very high level life in general and medicine in particular.

The example of Cuba is even more impressive. Here, for 11 million people, there are 3,000 centenarians and those who have exceeded this age limit. Again, the secret is in the close attention of the state to health issues.

Taiwan has long been considered another "hotbed of longevity". There are over 1,200 people aged 100 and over in a small country. Here, apparently, the issue is Eastern traditions food and unhurried being, a philosophical attitude to the world.

Legends of the world: undocumented "champions"

There lived such a character in China: Li Chung-yan. He left for another world in 1933 and assured that the year of his birth was 1680, that is, he lived for 253 years. He did not hide the origins of his cheerfulness: exercise stress, special breathing exercises and ... oriental equanimity. “The heart must be kept at rest and sleep like it was the last time,” he taught those around him.

What do they say about it historical facts? Archivists found documents where we are talking about congratulating a person named Lee Chung-yan Chinese emperor. And the supreme ruler congratulated him on his glorious anniversaries of 150 and 200 years. Whether this is the same person or a full namesake, a relative of the centenarian of the 20th century, remains a big question. But I really want to believe!

Other centenarians of the world called different dates: for example, the Hungarians Zoltan Petrazh and Petr Zortai assured that they lived 186 and 185 years, respectively. Pakistani Mahammad Afziya - 180, as well as a number of representatives of other countries.

The Soviet Union even issued a postage stamp in honor of Mukhamed Eyvazov. He died in 1959 at the age of about 151.

And here instructive story from English experts in antiquity. King Charles in 1935 invited the peasant Thomas Parr to London, who assured that he was 152 years old, he survived 9 kings. Karl did not stint on magnificent celebrations. But after a plentiful feast, a unique guest died. It was officially announced that from pneumonia, he was buried with honors in Westminster Abbey. But most scholars agree that the real reason the tragic ending was a banal overeating at the royal table.

Longevity world record holders

If you look at the lists proposed by Wikipedia, then they list the 100 most "long-playing" inhabitants of the planet, whose proven age at the time of death exceeded 114 years. The lists of the “younger” ones, aged 100 and older, are much longer.

And here again we meet with riddles and contradictions. If decent living conditions help to enjoy years somewhere, then how to explain the phenomenon of Maggie Pauline Barnes, who lived 115 years 319 days (from 1882 to 1998). This is truly unique: she is the only representative of the centenarians of the world who were born into slavery.

The mentioned lists and examples from the Guinness Book of Records also mention the names of American women Bessie Cooper, Elizabeth Bolden, Japanese woman Tane Ikai, representative of Ecuador Maria Capovilla and dozens of other “champions” who have crossed the line of 116-year life expectancy. And Sarah Knauss at the time of her death was over 119 years old (she is from the USA).

Japanese Tane Ikai said that her success is connected with her love for seafood, which she always preferred in nutrition. But the Canadian Maria Louise Mailer safely reached the age of 117 years and 230 days, but all her life she worked tirelessly, moreover, in difficult conditions. Two husbands, 10 children. In addition, Maria did not refuse a glass or two of wine, but quit smoking on her 90th birthday.

There are few men in this glorious cohort. In the Guinness Book of World Records category of centenarians, the name of a Japanese who lived a little over 116 years is recorded. This is Jiroemon Kimura. Christian Mortensen, a Dane who emigrated to the USA, enjoyed life for 115 years and 252 days. Puerto Rican Emiliano Mercado del Toro is also among the record holders with a total of 115 years 163 days. There are several more "junior" champions.

Jeanne Calment: frenetic Frenchwoman

For many years, Jeanne-Louise Calment led the list of the longest-livers in the world with a phenomenal result of 122 years and 164 days (1875-1997). Just imagine: she could see the first flight of the Wright brothers, survived two world wars and a bunch of other significant events in world history.

I suggest watching a video about her and about the Top 10 centenarians of our planet.

It turns out that her recipe for success is constant physical activity. The bike, and not a pleasure bike, she was almost a pro in racing! And at the age of 85, she learned to fence decently. Before last days was in memory and a clear mind, distinguished by an excellent sense of humor. And a taste for good clothes!

Louise Kalman explained her record by the ability to follow simple rule: "When problems cannot be solved, there is no need to worry."

By the way, the frantic Frenchwoman did not eat nectar and ambrosia at all. Do you know when she denied herself the pleasure of drinking a glass of port every day? At 117 years old! One unfortunate notary decided to “benefit” the 92-year-old Jeanne-Louise by undertaking to pay her a life annuity. She lived another 30 years, having outlived the notary for a long time, which did not wait for her modest apartment.

Antisa Khvichava: an example of diligence

But who should be considered officially recognized as the longest-lived person in the world in the entire history, at least the modern one? This is Antisa Khvichava, an ordinary Georgian woman who did not live long enough to reach the milestone of 133 years. For 85 years she worked on tea plantations.

There are documents confirming the authenticity of the fact of her birth in 1880. This was recognized by the specialists of the Guinness Book of Records, who issued the corresponding certificate to the Georgian woman.

Antisa Khvichava was illiterate, so she did not undertake to tell the numerous guests about the origins of her uniqueness. But she was interested in the latest in science, she wanted to learn how to use a computer. Her quickness of mind and natural curiosity remained with her until her last breath.

And what do scientists know about the secret of longevity?

Let's try to draw some conclusions. Who are they, the long-livers of the world: people who have made themselves or the lucky ones, the minions of fate?

Of course, much is being done in terms of general development health care, increasing the life expectancy of entire countries and peoples. Child mortality rates are declining, much has been done in terms of finding new methods of treating oncology and diseases of the cardiovascular system. But they still take the most human lives, making his black edit to the statistics.

University of California anatomy professor Leonard Hayflick discovered an interesting pattern: human life expectancy and the ratio of brain weight to body weight are proportionally related. The more private it is, the longer life. According to him, aging begins when we stop growing. In fact, from 30 years, or even earlier. But sharks, Galapagos tortoises and a number of other creatures age very slowly, because almost all their lives they grow a little, but grow in size.

Paracelsus, meanwhile, was sure that a person could live 600 years. His Russian colleagues Ilya Mechnikov and Alexander Bogomolets gave us a term of 160 years.

We can say that the process is influenced by heredity, and this is partly true. Ecology, nutrition, a healthy lifestyle are all factors of influence. But, even from the above examples, it is clear that "our" centenarians were not angelic beings. Some drank, by the way, some, even quite decently, others smoked or even smoked recklessly, others abused coffee.

The Irish landowner Brown, who is believed to have lived to be 120 years old, bequeathed to make himself a gravestone inscription. Here is her text: "He was always drunk and so terrible in this state that death itself was afraid of him."

Here are the thoughts for all of us... But there is, there is one thing in common that unites all the centenarians of the world - this is an inexhaustible love of life, optimism. They lived long because they sincerely loved life. And she repaid them in return.

I wish you all good health and the simple joys of life. We all have something to learn from centenarians: the same positive attitude, hard work and a calmer attitude to stress.

And for the soul, we will listen today Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Piano Concerto No. 23 , in A major, 2nd movement Adagio. Piano: Vladimir Horowitz. Listen to such beautiful music more often. Mozart is light, purity and just spiritual joy.

The longest living insect is the termite queen (50 years)

Usually people think that insects only live for a few days or weeks, but if you're particularly important, all the rules don't apply. Regardless of the species, a termite colony is ruled by a king and queen. After being inseminated by a male, the queen slowly ramps up her production of eggs, starting with a few dozen and eventually reaching around 25,000 eggs per day (of course, not all of these eggs mature). Not the dinner of predators, termite queens have been known to reach 50 years of age, and kings (who spend almost their entire lives locked in a nuptial chamber with their prolific queens) also have relatively long life. As for the simple worker termites that make up the bulk of the colony, they live for a maximum of one to two years. Such is the fate of the ordinary slave.

Longest-lived fish - koi (50 years)

IN wild nature fish rarely live longer than a few years, and even aquarium gold fish requires good care to reach a decade. But many fish in the world would envy the colored koi popular in Japan and other parts of the world, including the US. Like other representatives of cyprinids, which can withstand a wide variety of conditions environment, although (especially given their bright colours that people like), they are not particularly well camouflaged against predators. Individual koi are estimated to live over 200 years, but the most widely accepted estimate among scientists is 50 years, which is much longer than the average inhabitant of your aquarium.

Longest living bird - macaw (100 years)

These colorful parrots are able to breed throughout their lives: the females incubate the eggs and take care of the chicks, while the males forage for food. With a lifespan of up to 60 years in the wild and up to 100 years in captivity, macaws are almost as good as humans. Ironically, although these birds can live for a very long time, many species are endangered due to the desire of people to keep them as pets and logging. The longevity of macaws and other members of the parrot family begs the question: since birds evolved from dinosaurs, and since we know that many dinosaurs were just as small and colorful, could some of these prehistoric reptiles have reached the age of a century?

The longest-lived amphibian is the European proteus (100 years)

If you are asked to name animals that regularly reach the age limit, then the blind amphibian is the European Proteus ( Proteus anguinus) will probably be last on your list: how can a fragile, eyeless, caveman, 30 cm amphibian survive in the wild for even a couple of weeks? Naturalists attribute the longevity of the European Proteus to an unusually slow metabolism. These amphibians reach sexual maturity only at 15 years old, and also lay eggs no more than once every 12 years. They practically do not move, except when looking for food. Moreover, in damp caves Southern Europe, where the European proteus lives, there are practically no predators, which allows you to live up to 100 years in the wild. In comparison, the Japanese giant salamander, which is the second longest-lived amphibian, rarely crosses the 50-year mark.

Longest living primate - human (100 years)

It is not uncommon for humans to live to be 100 years old or more, making us the longest living primates. There are about half a million people in the world who are about 100 years old. Tens of thousands of years ago Homo sapiens was considered old if he lived to 20-30 years, and until the 18th century, the average life expectancy rarely exceeded 50 years. The main culprits were high infant mortality and susceptibility to fatal diseases. However, at any stage of human history, if you managed to survive in early childhood And adolescence, your chances of living 50, 60, or even 70 have been greatly multiplied. To what can we attribute this amazing increase in longevity? Well, in a word, civilization, especially sanitation, medicine, nutrition and cooperation (during ice age the human tribe most likely left their elderly relatives to starve in the cold, and today we are making special efforts to take care of our octogenarian relatives.)

The longest living mammal is the bowhead whale (200 years old)

As a rule, more large mammals have a relatively long lifespan, but even by this standard, bowhead whales are far ahead, as they often cross the 200-year mark. IN Lately analysis of the bowhead whale genome has shed some light on this mystery: it turns out that these whales have unique genes that help in DNA repair and resistance to mutations (and therefore cancer). Because the bowhead whale lives in arctic and subarctic waters, its relatively slow metabolism may also have something to do with longevity. Today, about 25,000 bowhead whales live in the northern hemisphere, a positive trend in population recovery since 1966, when a major international effort was made to deter whalers.

Longest living reptile - giant tortoise (300 years)

Giant tortoises of the Galapagos and Seychelles are classic examples of "island gigantism" - the propensity of animals confined to island habitats and without natural predators, grow up to unusually large sizes. And these turtles have a lifespan that perfectly matches their weight of 200 to 500 kg. Giant tortoises are known to live longer than 200 years, and there is every reason to believe that in the wild they regularly overcome the 300-year mark. Like some of the other animals on this list, the reasons for the longevity of giant tortoises are obvious: these reptiles move very slowly, their basal metabolism is extremely low, and their life stages tend to be relatively long (e.g., giant turtle Aldabra reaches sexual maturity only at the age of 30).

Longest-lived shark - Greenland shark (400 years)

If there was justice in the world, then the Greenland shark would be as famous as the big one. White shark: She is also large (some adults exceed 1000 kg) and much more exotic given her northern arctic habitat. You might think that the Greenland Shark is as dangerous as the Jaws Star, but while a hungry white shark will bite you in half, the Grenadian Shark is relatively harmless to humans. However, the most remarkable fact relatively Greenland shark, is its life span of over 400 years. This longevity is due to the cold habitat and very low metabolism. Surprisingly, these sharks reach sexual maturity after 100 years, while most of the others at this age are not only sexually inactive, but have long been dead!

The longest-lived mollusk is the Icelandic cyprina ( Arctica islandica) (500 years)

A 500-year-old clam sounds like a joke, since most clams are virtually immobile, and how can you tell for sure if it's alive or not? However, there are scientists who research such things, and they have determined that the Icelandic cyprina ( Arctica islandica) can literally live for centuries, as evidenced by one specimen that has passed the 500-year mark (you can tell the age of a clam by counting the growth rings on its shell). Ironically, Icelandic cyprina is also a popular food in some parts of the world, meaning that most shellfish will never be able to celebrate their quincentenary. Biologists have yet to figure out why Arctica islandica live so long, but one reason could be relatively stable antioxidant levels, which prevent the damage responsible for most of the signs of aging in animals.

The longest living microorganisms are endoliths (10,000 years)

Determining the life span of microorganisms is a rather complicated process. In a sense, all bacteria are immortal, as they spread their genetic information by constantly dividing (not, like most higher animals, by having sex). The term "endoliths" refers to, or algae, that live deep underground in crevices. rocks, corals and animal shells. Studies have shown that some individuals from endolithic colonies undergo cell division only once every hundred years, and their lifespan reaches 10,000 years. Technically, this is different from the ability of some microorganisms to revive after stagnation or deep freezing after tens of thousands of years. Endoliths are literally constantly "alive", although not very active. They are autotrophic organisms that carry out metabolism not with the help of oxygen or sunlight, and using inorganic chemical substances, which are practically inexhaustible in their habitats.

Longest living invertebrate - Turritopsis dohrnii (potentially immortal)

There is no reliable way to determine how many years the average jellyfish lives. These are so fragile that they do not lend themselves to intensive research in laboratories. However, no rating of long-lived animals would be complete without mentioning Turritopsis dohrnii- a species of jellyfish that is able to return to the polyp stage after reaching puberty, which makes them potentially immortal. However, it is almost unbelievable that any individual T. dohrnii could live for millions of years. Biological "immortality" doesn't mean you won't be eaten by other animals or killed by sudden changes in environmental conditions. Unfortunately, it is almost impossible to keep jellyfish T. dohrnii in captivity, a feat that has so far been accomplished by only one scientist working in Japan.