Professor James Leonard Brierley Smith (born 26 October1897 - died 7 January1968) was a South African scientist who in 1938 was the first to identify a captured fish as a coelecanth, at the time thought long extinct. October 26 is the 299th day of the year (300th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 66 days remaining. ... 1897 was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... January 7 is the seventh day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1968 was a leap year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1968 calendar). ... 1938 was a common year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ... Species Latimeria chalumnae Latimeria menadoensis Coelacanths (pronounced SEE-le-canth, meaning hollow spine in Greek) are lobe_finned fish with the pectoral and anal fins on fleshy stalks supported by bones, and the tail fin divided into three lobes, the middle one of which also has a stalk. ...
(More to come, including references to Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer) Marjorie Eileen Doris Courtenay-Latimer (February 24, 1907-May 17, 2004) was the South African museum official who in 1938 brought to the attention of the world the existence of the coelacanth, a fish thought to have been extinct for seventy million years. ...
It was imperative that Smith go in person to examine the specimen If he announced to the public that a live coelacanth had been discovered he would be the laughing stock of the ichthyological world if he was wrong.
Smith, with the help of his wife, worked hard for four months to complete a scientific paper announcing the remarkable discovery to the world in June of 1939.
Smith thought that the home grounds of the creature might be north near the Mozambique channel, so he had posters printed up in English, French and Portuguese with a drawing of the Coelacanth.
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