Science, Space and Technology News 2024
During a significant warming event 93 million years ago, some sharks developed elongated pectoral fins to adapt to hotter ocean temperatures, a change documented in a recent study. These adaptations helped them transition from bottom dwellers to efficient open-water predators, a response that modern sharks may struggle to emulate given today’s rapid climate change.
Sharks that live in different parts of the ocean, and their respective pectoral fins. Credit: Phillip Sternes/UCRLonger pectoral fins help make shark movements much more efficient. “Their fins are comparable to the wings of commercial airplanes, long and narrow, to minimize the amount of energy needed for movement,” Sternes said.
Only about 13% of modern sharks are fast-swimming open-water predators. The researchers believe that breathing may have become difficult for their ancient relatives. Oxygen levels near the bottom during theModern sea surface temperatures average about 68 degrees. In the Cretaceous they were much warmer, reaching an average of about 83 degrees. The high heat of the Cretaceous did not happen overnight, and neither did the sharks’ evolution.
France Dernières Nouvelles, France Actualités
Similar News:Vous pouvez également lire des articles d'actualité similaires à celui-ci que nous avons collectés auprès d'autres sources d'information.
Darwin Revisited: Modern Data Sheds Light on Ancient Evolutionary TheoriesScience, Space and Technology News 2024
Lire la suite »
Evolutionary history of extinct duck revealedThe study's findings show mergansers arrived in the New Zealand region at least seven million years ago from the Northern Hemisphere, in a separate colonisation event to that which led to the Brazilian merganser.
Lire la suite »
Some Dinosaurs Sported Scales and Feathers as an Evolutionary AdvantageX-Rays and UV examinations of Psittacosaurus skin shine light on dinosaur transition from reptile to bird.
Lire la suite »
Researchers reveal evolutionary origins of appetite by studying simple nervous system of HydraOver the course of evolution, living organisms have gradually developed more complex nervous systems in order to coordinate increasingly complex sensory, motor and cognitive functions and to control the associated behavior.
Lire la suite »
Origin of life: New co-evolutionary model challenges traditional theoriesA new study challenges origin of life theories, highlighting peptide amyloids' role in stabilizing genetic material.
Lire la suite »
On repeat: Biologists observe recurring evolutionary changes, over time, in stick insectsA long-standing debate among evolutionary scientists goes something like this: Does evolution happen in a predictable pattern or does it depend on chance events and contingency? That is, if you could turn back the clock, as celebrated scientist Stephen Jay Gould (1941–2002) described in his famous metaphor, 'Replaying the Tape of Life,' would life...
Lire la suite »