At the time of its discovery, the ocean quahog, also known as Arctica islandica bivalve mollusk, made it into the Guinness Book of World Records as the world's longest-lived non-colonial animal. They can be found in what is known as ophiolites, which are sections of oceanic crusts that have been pushed on top of a continental crust.Continental crusts are less dense than oceanic crusts, making it rare for them to exist under oceanic crusts unless forced under by extreme pressure. The Pacific is the oldest of the current ocean basins, with the oldest rocks on its floor being around 200 million years old. Hafrún (c. 1499–2006) is a nickname given to a specimen of the ocean quahog clam (Arctica islandica, family Arcticidae), that was dredged off the coast of Iceland in 2006 and whose age was calculated by counting annual growth lines in the shell. Quahog clams are known for their longevity. Ming the clam, the world's oldest animal, killed at 507 years old by scientists trying to tell how old it was Ming the clam was first discovered in 2006 and killed by scientists unaware of its age. So it is common to find members of the species that are older than 100. A 220-year-old taken from American waters in 1982 holds the official Guinness Book of World Records oldest animal title. To be fair, they didn't know it was the world's oldest at the time. The ocean quahog, or clam, was actually 507 years old when it was plucked from its North Atlantic home and placed into a freezer. Ocean quahogs are known for their long life spans according to a 2011 study. Scientists said the ocean quahog clam was aged between 405 and 410 years and could offer insights into the secrets of longevity. photo source: ResearchGate Some of the oldest oceanic crusts aren’t found in the ocean at all. During the time that Ming recruited out of the plankton in the early 16 th century, the New World was brand new, Leonardo Da Vinci was working on the Mona Lisa, and the Ming Dynasty ruled China (hence the name). Researchers originally found the world’s oldest living creature, an ocean quahog clam, off the coast of Iceland in 2006. World’s Oldest Known Animal. Researchers from Bangor University in north Wales said they calculated its age by counting rings on its shell. The ocean quahog (Arctica islandica) is a species of edible clam, a marine bivalve mollusk in the family Arcticidae. Ocean Quahog Ming – World’s Oldest Animal, 507 Years Old Analysis: Ming, the clam ( Arctica islandica , an ocean quahog) is popularly considered as the World’s Oldest Animal at 507 years old. 3 Ocean Quahog. This species is native to the North Atlantic Ocean, and … Other individual ocean quahogs have been collected with ages estimated in the few hundreds. The world's oceans are constantly changing in size as tectonics makes the great plates of the Earth's crust slowly move around. Their age can be checked by their dark rings around their shells, which can be a great indicator of age. But seven years later, researchers have determined that Ming the clam, an ocean quahog, or Arctica islandica, was actually 507 years old -- 100 years older than previously estimated. Their life spans make them the perfect specimen for scientists to use for the study of the history of the ocean and climate change, according to BBC. To be fair, they didn't know it was the world's oldest at the time. The ocean quahog might be easily the oldest living animal in the sea. The clam has been nicknamed Ming, after the Chinese dynasty in power when it was born. Now, after examining the ocean quahog more closely, using more refined methods, the researchers have found the animal was actually 100 years older than they first thought. If the elderly deserve respect, scientists didn't show much in 2006 when they killed the world's oldest animal. The Pacific is gradually shrinking in size by a few cm per year as the Atlantic Ocean expands due to plate tectonics.