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Health & Science3h 34m ago
Field notebooks recently recovered from a late paleontologist provided crucial details needed to complete a study of a remarkable fossil fish discovered nearly three decades ago, identifying it as a new tarpon species named Ikawaihere koehleri.
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Pitt Island, Chatham Islands, New Zealand
Who
Dr. Richard Köhler, Professor Mike Gottfried, Emeritus Professor Daphne Lee, Professor Ewan Fordyce, Andrew Grebneff, Richard's family, Heidi Lanauze, Hokotehi Moriori Trust
What
Field notebooks recently recovered from a late paleontologist provided crucial details needed to complete a study of a remarkable fossil fish discovered nearly three decades ago, identifying it as a new tarpon species named Ikawaihere koehleri.
When
Fri, 12 Jun 2026 14:06:00 GMT · 3h 34m ago
Where
Pitt Island, Chatham Islands, New Zealand ·
Why
Critical geological information about the exact discovery site was missing after Dr. Richard Köhler's death, delaying the research until his field notebooks were donated.
The Frontline Impact
How this affects you
The study, published in the New Zealand Journal of Geology and Geophysics, expands knowledge of tarpons' evolutionary history and documents the first high-in-the-food-chain predatory bony fish from Paleogene rocks in New Zealand.
Story chain
3 events in this thread- Health & Science3h 34m agoField notebooks from a late paleontologist provided crucial details, enabling researchers to complete a study of a fossil fish discovered on Pitt Island in the Chatham Islands.Open article
- Health & Science3h 34m agoField notebooks belonging to the late Dr. Richard Köhler provided crucial details for researchers to complete a study of a 55-million-year-old fossil fish found on Pitt Island, New Zealand.Open article
- Currently Reading3h 34m agoField notebooks recently recovered from a late paleontologist provided crucial details needed to complete a study of a remarkable fossil fish discovered nearly three decades ago, identifying it as a new tarpon species named Ikawaihere koehleri.