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Livyatan is an extinct genus of macroraptorial sperm whale containing one known species: L. melvillei.The genus name was inspired by the biblical sea monster Leviathan, and the species name by Herman Melville, the author of the famous novel Moby-Dick about a white bull sperm whale.
Livyatan probably targeted medium-sized whales ranging in size from 7–10 m (23–33 ft). Macroraptorials probably competed with the extinct giant shark megalodon for the same food sources. [7] [10] [11] [12] In sperm whales, the supracranial basin holds the spermaceti organ, a series of oil and wax reservoirs which aids in echolocation.
The sperm whale or cachalot [a] (Physeter macrocephalus) is the largest of the toothed whales and the largest toothed predator.It is the only living member of the genus Physeter and one of three extant species in the sperm whale family, along with the pygmy sperm whale and dwarf sperm whale of the genus Kogia.
A newly discovered ancient species of whale may be one of the largest and heaviest animals on record, a new study has found. ... and the enormous macropredatory sperm whale Livyatan melvillei ...
A livyatan refers to a toothed whale that actually existed. According to Kim, the livyatan is an ancient whale related to a modern sperm whale. Its skull is about nine feet long and its teeth are ...
The head probably took up 21–23% of the total body size, compared to that of the modern sperm whale which takes up around one fourth to one third of the total body size. Like in other sperm whales, the blowhole was slanted towards the left side of the animal, and it may have lacked a right nasal passage.
Livyatan melvillei is an extinct species of sperm whale that lived about 9.9 to 8.9 million years ago, during the Miocene epoch. The name was inspired by the biblical sea monster Leviathan, and Herman Melville, the author of Moby-Dick. It was probably an apex predator, preying on whales and seals.
[27] [58] Contrary to modern sperm whales, most ancient sperm whales were built to hunt whales. Livyatan had a short and wide rostrum measuring 10 feet (3.0 m) across, which gave the whale the ability to inflict major damage on large struggling prey, such as other early whales. Species like these are collectively known as killer sperm whales or ...