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Bony outgrowths on the jaws of an extinct sperm whale support macroraptorial feeding in several stem physeteroids

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Abstract

Several extinct sperm whales (stem Physeteroidea) were recently proposed to differ markedly in their feeding ecology from the suction-feeding modern sperm whales Kogia and Physeter. Based on cranial, mandibular, and dental morphology, these Miocene forms were tentatively identified as macroraptorial feeders, able to consume proportionally large prey using their massive teeth and robust jaws. However, until now, no corroborating evidence for the use of teeth during predation was available. We report on a new specimen of the stem physeteroid Acrophyseter, from the late middle to early late Miocene of Peru, displaying unusual bony outgrowths along some of the upper alveoli. Considering their position and outer shape, these are identified as buccal maxillary exostoses. More developed along posterior teeth and in tight contact with the high portion of the dental root outside the bony alveoli, the exostoses are hypothesized to have developed during powerful bites; they may have worked as buttresses, strengthening the teeth when facing intense occlusal forces. These buccal exostoses further support a raptorial feeding technique for Acrophyseter and, indirectly, for other extinct sperm whales with a similar oral apparatus (Brygmophyseter, Livyatan, Zygophyseter). With a wide size range, these Miocene stem physeteroids were major marine macropredators, occupying ecological niches nowadays mostly taken by killer whales.

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Acknowledgments

We thank W Aguirre, E Díaz, R Salas-Gismondi, and M Urbina for giving us access to the specimen and for its final preparation. Constructive comments from C de Muizon, ND Pyenson, and two anonymous reviewers considerably enhanced the quality of the article. This work was financially supported by MIUR grant (PRIN 2012YJSBM, resp. GB), SYNTHESYS grant (BE-TAF-2842, GB), and Return Grant of the Belgian Federal Science Policy Office (2012–April 2013, OL).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Direction Opérationnelle Terre et Histoire de la Vie, Institut Royal des Sciences Naturelles de Belgique, 29 rue Vautier, Brussels, 1000, Belgium

    Olivier Lambert

  2. Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, Università di Pisa, 53 via S. Maria, Pisa, 56126, Italy

    Giovanni Bianucci

  3. NYIT College of Osteopathic Medicine, Northern Blvd, Old Westbury, NY, 11568, USA

    Brian L. Beatty

  4. Department of Paleobiology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, 20560, USA

    Brian L. Beatty

  5. Virginia Museum of Natural History, Martinsville, VA, 24112, USA

    Brian L. Beatty

Authors
  1. Olivier Lambert
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  2. Giovanni Bianucci
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  3. Brian L. Beatty
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Olivier Lambert.

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Communicated by: Sven Thatje

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Lambert, O., Bianucci, G. & Beatty, B.L. Bony outgrowths on the jaws of an extinct sperm whale support macroraptorial feeding in several stem physeteroids. Naturwissenschaften 101, 517–521 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00114-014-1182-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00114-014-1182-2

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