Cetacean terrestrial ancestor

2008/02/01 Elhuyar Zientzia Iturria: Elhuyar aldizkaria

• Eboluzioa
• Zoologia

The fossils of an artiodactyl mammal discovered in Kaxmir in India have been studied by the University of Northeast Ohio and have concluded that it was a terrestrial ancestor of cetaceans. Among the animals known, the fossil had an exclusive characteristic of cetaceans: in the middle ear it had a thick bone covering (called "engum"). This characteristic associates the two animal groups. It was like a small deer and the teeth indicate that it ate dried plants. Scientists concluded that it entered the water to escape predators.