Unique Biochemical and Mineral Composition of Whale Ear Bones

Cetaceans are obligate aquatic mammals derived from terrestrial artiodactyls. The defining characteristic of cetaceans is a thick and dense lip (pachyosteosclerotic involucrum) of an ear bone (the tympanic). This unique feature is absent in modern terrestrial artiodactyls and is suggested to be impo...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Kim, S., Thewissen, J., Churchill, M., Suydam, R., Ketten, Darlene, Clementz, M.
Format: Journal Article
Published: The University of Chicago Press 2014
Subjects:
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/11090