Say hello to the “ Echo Hunter , ” a 27 million - year - old jagged giant that ’s helping scientists empathise how these ancient ocean animal evolved the power to learn high - absolute frequency underwater , and then sprain that ability into a killing technique .
Ina young paperpublished in Current Biology , researchers from the New York Institute of Technology and the National Museum of National History in France describe a new metal money of whale , called Echovenator sandersi ( meaning “ replication hunter ” ) , that ’s supply important unexampled clues about the evolution of high-pitched - frequency earshot in aquatic mammalian . This research bear on the origin of supersonic audition in whales about 10 million years in the beginning than previous estimates .
E. sandersi was an ancient relative of the dolphin , and it could hear frequencies well above the reach of human hearing . A squad led by NYIT professor Morgan Churchill came to this conclusion after analyzing a 27 million - year - old skull that was discovered in a South Carolina drainage ditch in 2001 . Analysis of the bony support structures in its inner ear membranes , along with other measurements of the inner pinna , show that this ancient sea creature had supersonic earreach capabilities .
After analyse the fossilised ear with a CT scanner , the research worker compared it to those of two Hippopotamus amphibius and 23 known cetaceans . They uncovered several features also found in modern dolphins , which can hear at ultrasonic oftenness . These heavyweight were capable to detect high - frequency reverberation by sensing shaking first through the mandible , and then in the internal pinna . In fact , these hearing organs were so well specify , and so modern , that the research worker mistrust ultrasonic hearing issue even earlier than 27 million years ago .
As a search technique , echolocation requires two things to work . First , an animal — whether it be a bat , a mahimahi , or a whale — want to be able to learn gamey - frequencies . second , it ask the ability to bring forth a in high spirits frequency sound , and then render those reflections to nail the exact locating of quarry . “ Our study suggest that high - frequency auditory modality may have premise the growth of echo sounding , ” noted Churchill . What ’s more , the find of E. sandersi evoke both of these capacities existed at least 27 million year ago .
“ This was a modest , toothed whale that probably used its remarkable sense of pick up to find and pursue Pisces with Echo only , ” noted study co - source Jonathan Geisler in a argument . “ This would allow it to hound at night , but more significantly , it could hunt at great depths in shadow , or in very sediment - choked environment . ”
look ahead , the research worker would like to consider the skull in more detail to figure out which features of the inner ear are required to listen sound of a given oftenness .
[ Current Biology ]
BiologyEvolutionPaleontologySciencewhales
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