Peru's 'sea monster': a colossal animal that ate sharks and dominated the sea

Species endangered by this fearsome marine animal that remained hidden in the Peruvian sea. In 2021, one of the most important discoveries ever recorded in the country was announced. It was only at the beginning of 2022 that the first assessments of the skeletal remains of Peru's so-called 'sea monster', an ancient whale considered one of the largest predators that existed 36 million years ago, were reported. Its impressive size has surprised the research community, being 17 meters.

The discovery of the whale's skull was made thanks to an unburial that took place in the Peruvian desert located in Ocucaje, Ica. The analysis of this piece specifies that because of the shape of its teeth, sharp and shaped like a razor, it fed on sharks and similar in size.

“Thanks to this type of fossil we can reconstruct the history of the Peruvian sea. This is an extraordinary find due to its great state of conservation. This animal was one of the largest predators of its time,” Rodolfo Salas-Gismondia, researcher and director of the Department of Vertebrate Paleontology at the Natural History Museum of Lima, told AFP.

YOUR HUNTING AREA

Salas mentions that at that time estimated, the Peruvian sea had a warm temperature, which would have been a warm and comfortable environment for this animal, which would have been part of the species basilosurio, which belongs to the family of aquatic cetaceans, which has whales, dolphins and porpoises among its descendants.

Although the word “basilosaurus” means “king lizard”, this animal was not a reptile, although thanks to its long body it could have moved like a giant snake, according to the San Marcos National University team responsible for the research. “When he was looking for his food, he surely did a lot of damage” he says when trying to describe his method of hunting under water.

Experts indicated that when the ancient whale died, its skull probably sank to the bottom of the sea, where it was quickly buried and preserved. Its conservation and perfect state of fossilization is due to the soil that makes up the Ocucaje district.

By the end of the Eocene period (between 56 and 34 million years ago), cetaceans had fully adapted to marine life. In the case of whales, they had not yet evolved and almost all were marine macro predators.

ABOUT THE PLACE OF THE DISCOVERY

Experts responsible for the research argued that the Ocucaje Desert is rich in fossils, providing scientists with 42-million-year-old evolutionary evidence. Other fossils that were found in this destination have been four-legged dwarf whales, dolphins, sharks and other species from the Miocene period.

ABOUT THE WHALES

A GreenPeace article explains that whales are the largest animals that ever existed. They belong to a group of marine mammals known as cetaceans. They are not fish because they are warm-blooded, breathe air through their lungs and give birth to live offspring that feed on breast milk.

There are two types of whales and they are classified as:

- The jagged ones (such as sperm whale and killer whale). They have teeth and are within the suborder of odontocetes. Their anatomy and physical design allow them to survive in their habitat. These marine mammals rely on their pectoral and dorsal fins with which they move in the water and maintain their balance.

- The barbadas (such as the humpback whale and the blue whale). They have plates in the form of combs that are formed by structures composed of rigid hairs. These generate a network that filters food from seawater.

The vast majority of large whales are bearded and feed mainly on tiny creatures called krill, similar to shrimp.

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