Shellseeker Posted July 15 Share Posted July 15 https://apnews.com/article/whale-zealand-spade-toothed-beaked-stranding-conservation-643f3b1ad1acfba9bff73837a86a4ef1 A couple of photos. Unusual teeth of the rare spade-toothed whale (Mesoplodon traversii) - Male. Senior synonym for Mesoplodon bahamondi, Te Papa Museum, New Zealand (NZ), stock photo. 4 2 The White Queen ".... in her youth she could believe "six impossible things before breakfast" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaybot Posted July 15 Share Posted July 15 Thanks for sharing Shellseeker! I had never heard of this; very cool. This animal is nearly a 'cryptid' seeing how rare and elusive it is. Also, I am hoping they find out what this whale eats. Those teeth certainly are unique. 2 -Jay “The earth doesn't need new continents, but new men.” ― Jules Verne, Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pachy-pleuro-whatnot-odon Posted July 18 Share Posted July 18 Very interesting! Not just for the fact that, apparently, there can still be large animals on our planet that we don't know about. And also, that tooth morphology is just crazy! Will be interesting to see what they find out, as in terms of dentition, this really reminds me of the odd-toothed mosasaur Xenodens calminechari, doesn't it, @Praefectus? I don't think we quite know what that beasty ate yet, so the spade-toothed whale might be a very interesting analogue...! 2 1 'There's nothing like millions of years of really frustrating trial and error to give a species moral fibre and, in some cases, backbone' -- Terry Pratchett Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaybot Posted July 18 Share Posted July 18 6 hours ago, pachy-pleuro-whatnot-odon said: this really reminds me of the odd-toothed mosasaur Xenodens calminechari, doesn't it, @Praefectus? I had never heard of that mosasaur... amazing tooth shape! I do see the similarity. -Jay “The earth doesn't need new continents, but new men.” ― Jules Verne, Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jared C Posted July 18 Share Posted July 18 There are actually quite a few beaked whale species with protruding teeth like this, but they are suction feeders and use these modified teeth to battle other members of their species. Beaked whales are famously scar covered, due to these mating duals. 3 “Not only is the universe stranger than we think, it is stranger than we can think” -Werner Heisenberg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shellseeker Posted July 18 Author Share Posted July 18 3 hours ago, Jared C said: There are actually quite a few beaked whale species with protruding teeth like this, but they are suction feeders and use these modified teeth to battle other members of their species. Beaked whales are famously scar covered, due to these mating duals. I love learning something new . Thanks... Have you found any of these teeth ? The White Queen ".... in her youth she could believe "six impossible things before breakfast" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doctor Mud Posted July 19 Share Posted July 19 Not sure if it’s in that article but the guy who found it wasn’t even on the beach! He spotted it from the comfort of his couch while looking at surf cameras on the internet! In New Zealand fossil beaked whales have been dredged up from the continental shelf, but the age is not pinned down. They are usually severely bioeroded and missing the teeth. A few months ago I found one of only 2 in situ beaked whale fossils in NZ. The fossils are just as elusive as the modern ones! 2 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaybot Posted July 19 Share Posted July 19 1 hour ago, Doctor Mud said: A few months ago I found one of only 2 in situ beaked whale fossils in NZ. The fossils are just as elusive as the modern ones! Wow, very nice- one of only 2!!! Do you happen to have a photo of that? 1 -Jay “The earth doesn't need new continents, but new men.” ― Jules Verne, Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doctor Mud Posted July 19 Share Posted July 19 4 hours ago, Jaybot said: Wow, very nice- one of only 2!!! Do you happen to have a photo of that? Here it is in this thread. Took me a while to figure out what it was! A fragment of the skull but still a rare piece. It fell down from a high cliff so I keep looking for the rest. Might be worth looking with a drone like they did for that massive pliosaur skull in the uk. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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