«This find by our Peruvian colleague Mario Urbina fills a major gap in the history of the group, and it provides clues about the ecology of early mysticetes,» says paleontologist and study co-author Olivier Lambert of the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences. (sciencedaily.com)
The teeth of the newly discovered species of mysticete, called Coronodon havensteini, lend support to the latter view. (sciencedaily.com)
But at some point during whale history, the ancestors of modern mysticetes replaced teeth with baleen, fibrous plates that filter out small bits of food from seawater like a giant sieve. (sciencenews.org)