In 1938, Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer, a South African museum curator, received a call from a local fisherman who had caught a bizarre, heavy fish with limb-like lobed fins and an armored head. Recognizing its uniqueness, she sent descriptions to J.L.B. Smith, a prominent chemist and amateur ichthyologist, who identified it as a coelacanth—a primitive fish believed to have gone extinct 66 million years ago. This shocking discovery shook the scientific community, challenging long-held assumptions about the fossil record and the evolutionary history of vertebrates.
To find more specimens, Smith launched a decades-long search along the coast of the Indian Ocean, eventually discovering a second population near the Comoro Islands. Researchers soon realized that the coelacanth was not merely a lone survivor but part of a resilient, deep-water ecosystem that had remained largely undisturbed for eons. Consequently, J.L.B. Smith spent many years traveling along the coast of Africa looking for more of these creatures.
The writer wants to conclude the passage by emphasizing that the coelacanth's discovery continues to influence modern marine biology. Given that all the choices are true, which choice best accomplishes this goal?
- ANO CHANGE
- Indeed, this extraordinary find continues to inspire marine biologists to explore the unresolved mysteries of the deep ocean.Answer
- CIndeed, this extraordinary find continues to inspire marine biologists, they hope to discover other prehistoric species in the deep ocean.
- DIndeed, this extraordinary find continues to inspire marine biologists, who will explore the deep ocean and discovered new species.