This Is the Oldest Living Creature and It Emerged 700 Million Years Ago, New Study Says

These creatures have been around for 700 million years. Image credit: Alexander Semenov
If you were asked to name the oldest living creature on Earth, what would you say? A turtle? A whale? A tree? Well, you might be surprised to learn that the answer is none of these. According to a recent study by scientists from the University of California, Berkeley, the oldest living creature on our planet is a jellyfish-like organism called a ctenophore, also known as a comb jelly.

Ctenophores are not actually jellyfish, but they belong to a different group of animals that have eight sets of cilia, or hair-like structures, that they use to swim and feed in the ocean. They are also bioluminescent, meaning they can produce light from their bodies. Some of them can even regenerate parts of their body if they are injured.