Leviathan is no longer a legend

Researchers have discovered fossilized remains of an ancient whale with scary large teeth.

With its enormous size as well as this sharp set of teeth, this 12 million-year-old creature is very worthy of the nickname 'Leviathan' (sea monster) that scientists gave it in the Nature paper.

Leviathan is a 17m fierce predator who can hunt other whales.

This sea monster could be longer than 17m and fought fiercely with another giant sea creature at that time.

Leviathan is more likely to be sperm whale today due to its similarities in size and shape. But the similarity is just that. While sperm whale is a relatively passive animal, Leviathan is a ferocious predator, manifested in two sharp teeth.

According to Dr. Christian de Muizon, director of the Natural History Museum in Paris, Leviathan can hunt a variety of marine creatures from dolphins, seals to other whales. 'It is a kind of sea monster', he expressed.

'And it is interesting to note that at that time, in the same water area was another monster - the giant shark was 15m long. It is possible that there were fierce battles between them. '

Researchers speculate that Leviathan can eat prey up to 8m in length. It can catch prey with large jaws and tear prey into pieces quickly and efficiently with giant teeth.

Leviathan's skull was discovered in Peru's 12 million-year-old sediment.

A 3m fossil skull of this monster was discovered by researchers in South Peru in 2008. Student of Christian de Muizon, Olivier Lambert is one of them. He recounted, it was the last day of their research expedition. One of his four colleagues came and said that he had found some very interesting things. They follow and are shown only by that person.

Immediately they realized it must be a huge whale and when they looked more closely, they saw that it was a giant sperm whale with huge teeth. Teeth that are twice the length and diameter of today's sperm teeth, they grow from the upper and lower jaws. The teeth of modern sperm whale also only grow in the lower jaw.

Dr. Lambert and his colleagues are excited about this discovery, the fossil skull shows that the Leviathan is not just a myth.

Researchers don't know why the ancient whale disappeared. They speculate that the change in the ecological environment must change this habit of eating it. This may have created a more wholesome whale fish today.

The authors of the Nature paper, whale experts are all fans of the Moby Dick novel about a fierce octopus fish. So they decided to devote this discovery to the author, Herman Melville, and give the creature a full scientific name, Leviathan melvillei .

Source: BBC