New fossil rattles Moby Dick's family tree

Almost since the time of Melville's epic hunt, scientists have been fascinated by the remarkable attributes of the sperm whale and its kin, the smaller pigmy and dwarf whales. Capable of diving to great depths and gifted ...

Ancient New Zealand 'Dawn Whale' identified

University of Otago palaeontologists are rewriting the history of New Zealand's ancient whales by describing a previously unknown genus of fossil baleen whales and two species within it.

Fossil shows fish had sucker on its back

(Phys.org) —A 30-million-year-old fossil has revealed how remoras – also called sharksuckers – evolved the sucker that enables them to stick to other fish and 'hitch a ride'.

When it comes to mammals, how big is too big?

(Phys.org) —Mammals vary enormously in size, from weighing less than a penny to measuring more than three school buses in length. Some groups of mammals have become very large, such as elephants and whales, while others ...

Dwarf whale survived well into Ice Age

Research from New Zealand's University of Otago detailing the fossil of a dwarf baleen whale from Northern California reveals that it avoided extinction far longer than previously thought.

How the whale got its teeth

Whales are mammals, but they don't look like the mammals living around us, as they have a triangular fluke for tail, no hind legs and no body hair. And inside their mouths, their teeth are unfamiliar too – being much simpler ...

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