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Methuselah, oldest living aquarium fish, believed to be about 90 years old

SAN FRANCISCO — A fish so old it was named for Methuselah, Noah’s grandfather who was said to have lived to be 969 years old, continues to swim in San Francisco at the California Academy of Sciences.

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Methuselah is a 4-foot long, 40-pound Australian lungfish, first brought to the San Francisco museum in 1938 from Australia, The Associated Press reported.

The Australian lungfish is believed to be the evolutionary link between fish and amphibians, The Associated Press reported.

The Methuselah in San Francisco is believed to be a female, and lives with two other Australian lungfish that are younger, and believed to be in their 40s or 50s, The Associated Press reported.

On its website, the California Academy of Sciences said Methuselah is an estimated 85-90 years old, and enjoys “on-demand belly rubs and being hand-fed figs.”

“I tell my volunteers, pretend she’s an underwater puppy, very mellow, gentle, but of course if she gets spooked she will have sudden bouts of energy. But for the most part she’s just calm,” said Allan Jan, the fish’s keeper, to The Associated Press.

The Academy told the AP it plans to send a tiny sample of her fin to researchers in Australia, who will confirm her sex and try to determine her exact age.