The fossil of a giant sperm whale more than 40 feet long (ten of it comprised by the skull alone) has been discovered off the coast of Peru. Estimated to be between 12 million and 13 million years old, the monster had 14 inch long teethon its upper and lower jaws “resembling elephant tusks that allowed it to rip its prey, unlike modern sperm whales which lack functional teeth in their upper jaws and rely upon suction to grab giant squid,” commented reseacher Olivier Lambert of the Museum National d’Histoire Naturelle in Paris.
Christened, Leviathan Melvillei (in honor of Herman Melville who wrote Moby Dick, as well as for a Hebrew named mythical sea monster), it “ had the largest known bite of any vertebrate creature with four limbs.” As a result, scientists have surmised that it may have dined on ancient baleen whales, ancestors of modern humpbacks or blue whales.
"It was larger than other marine mammals existing at that time,” stated Lambert, who added that researchers believe that, the constant threat of Leviathan may have even pressured the baleen whales to begin evolving into the giants they resemble today as a means of protection.” However, the current fossil records remains too “ fragmented” to actually prove that theory.
Although, top of the food chain it its day, the cooling climate during the Late Miocene around 10 million or 11 million years is the most likely cause of the monsters’ demise.
The fossil can now be seen at the the Natural History Museum of Lima, Peru. More details of the discovery can be found in tomorrow’s issue of Nature.
To learn more about whales and other denizens of the sea contact the Mystic Aquarium & Institute for Exploration 55 Coogan Blvd, Mystic, CT 06355-1977 860 572-5955, info@mysticaquarium.org.
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