Humpback Whale Baleen (IMAGE)
Caption
This photo of a humpback whale shows baleen, the soft, hair-like structure on the upper mouth of whales that allows them to trap prey in their mouth. When whales first evolved, they used teeth to chew their food, just like their land-dwelling ancestors. As time went on, many descendants of these early whales continued to chew their food, inheriting this trait from their predecessors. But as the oceans around them changed and animals evolved, entirely new feeding strategies arose, including baleen filter feeding.
Peredo and Pyenson see studying whale evolution as key to understanding their survival in today's rapidly changing oceans. Like the emergence of baleen, tooth loss in whales is evidence of adaptability, suggesting that whales might be able to adapt to challenges posed in the ocean today. Still, Peredo cautions, evolutionary change may be slow for the largest whales, which have long life spans and take a long time to reproduce.
Credit
Ari S. Friedlaender/University of California, Santa Cruz under NOAA permit
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