Odorous in water

2007/02/01 Elhuyar Zientzia Iturria: Elhuyar aldizkaria

• Biologia
• Zoologia

They have just discovered that the nasal bud is capable of smelling not only on land but also on water. And the doubt opens of whether other mammals have this capacity.

The nasal bud (Condylura cristata) hunts on land and in water. Recording the hunt with video cameras, a researcher at the University of Vanderbilt (USA) found that the mole also uses smell in water. He made the recording with a high-speed camera, and saw that the molo quickly introduced and extracted bubbles from the nostrils, ten times per second, such as short, fast breaths used by mice when smelling the air.

The researcher did several tests to check if these bubbles help him smell. And it seems that the test has been easily overcome by the mole: when it can use smell it gets a better result in hunting.