. 24/7 Space News .
EARLY EARTH
Giant extinct salmon fought with spike teeth during upriver spawning events
by Staff Writers
Salt Lake City UT (SPX) Nov 03, 2016


This is an illustration by Jacob Biewer. Image courtesy Society of Vertebrate Paleontology. For a larger version of this image please go here.

The ancient coastal waters of the Pacific, roughly 11 to 5 million years ago, were home to a bizarre and fascinating species of giant salmon with large spike-like teeth. This spike-toothed salmon reached sizes of 3 to 9 feet in length (1-3 meters), much larger than the typical salmon found in the Pacific today.

These hefty spike-toothed fish would have made for a difficult catch at nearly 400 pounds (177 kg). The spike-like teeth of the salmon could be over an inch long (3 cm), much longer than modern Pacific salmon teeth, even after compensating for their larger size. Researchers from California State University in Turlock, California have been studying the strange teeth of these unusual fish and discovered some tantalizing clues into their past behavior and life history.

Much like modern Pacific salmon, the giant salmon was likely primarily a filter-feeder, so the spike teeth were probably not part of catching prey. Modern salmon go through physical changes in their body, especially their skull, before migrating upriver to spawn where males will fight to defend the eggs they have fertilized.

To see if these teeth played an important role in breeding of the giant fossil salmon, the team of researchers, led by Dr. Julia Sankey, compared 51 different fossils from ancient deposits of both freshwater and saltwater environments.

The teeth of these salmon found in past freshwater environments consistently had longer, more recurved teeth with much larger bases, as well as showed clear signs of wear. Fossil salmon teeth from saltwater deposits were much smaller and less worn. This indicates that they changed prior to migration upriver to spawn.

These results help show that these impressive spike-like teeth of the giant salmon are indeed used as part of the breeding process in these extinct fish. Researchers think it is likely these hefty bruisers were using their spike-like teeth for fighting and display against each other during the spawning season, up in the ancient rivers of California.

"These giant, spike-toothed salmon were amazing fish. You can picture them getting scooped out of the Proto-Tuolumne River [near Modesto, California] by large bears 5 million years ago," said Dr. Sankey "Scientifically, our research on the giant salmon is filling in a gap in our knowledge about how these salmon lived, and specifically, if they developmentally changed prior to migration upriver like modern salmon do today.

"This research is also helping paint the picture of this area 5 million years ago for the general public and my college students, and it excites them to think of this giant salmon swimming up our local rivers 5 million years ago!".

Dr.Sankey and colleagues presented their research at this year's meeting of the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology in Salt Lake City, Utah.


Thanks for being here;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5 Billed Monthly


paypal only


.


Related Links
Society of Vertebrate Paleontology
Explore The Early Earth at TerraDaily.com






Comment on this article via your Facebook, Yahoo, AOL, Hotmail login.

Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle

Previous Report
EARLY EARTH
Chemical analysis demonstrates communal nesting in dinosaurs
Salt Lake City UT (SPX) Nov 03, 2016
The reproductive behaviors of birds are some of their most conspicuous and endearing qualities. From the colorful mating display of some birds, like peacocks, to the building of nests by nearly all birds, these are the characters we use to define birds and make them popular study subjects. One peculiar aspect of some birds is communal nesting, where multiple breeding pairs lay eggs in the ... read more


EARLY EARTH
Lisbon dreams of Europe's Silicon Valley tag

NASA Astronaut Kate Rubins, Crewmates Safely Return From the Space Station

Russia to Allocate $1.5Bln to Federal Space Program in 2017 - Draft Budget Plan

No Balloons for JPL's Birthday, Just a 'Satelloon'

EARLY EARTH
NASA Uses Tunnel Approach to Study How Heat Affects SLS Rocket

SpaceX Aims to Resume Falcon 9 Flights in 2016, Blames Helium Tank for Explosion

Raytheon gets $174 million Hypersonic Air-Breathing Weapon contract

SpaceX zeroes in on helium containers for rocket explosion

EARLY EARTH
New instrument could search for signatures of life on Mars

Detailed images of Schiaparelli and its descent hardware on Mars

Cursed not, Difficult yes

Did it crash or land? Search on for Europe's Mars craft

EARLY EARTH
China to launch Long March-5 carrier rocket in November

US, China hold second meeting on advancing space cooperation

China to enhance space capabilities with launch of Shenzhou-11

Ambitious space satellite projects set for liftoff

EARLY EARTH
Shared vision and goals for the future of Europe in space

SSL delivers Sky Perfect JSAT satellite to Kourou

Dream coming true for ISS-bound rookie French astronaut

Airbus DS contracts with Intelsat General for European Defence Communications

EARLY EARTH
3-D-printed permanent magnets outperform conventional versions, conserve rare materials

Nickel-78 is a doubly magic isotope supercomputer confirms

Researchers bring eyewear-free 3-D capabilities to small screen

Towards better metallic glasses

EARLY EARTH
How Planets Like Jupiter Form

Giant Rings Around Exoplanet Turn in the Wrong Direction

Preferentially Earth-sized Planets with Lots of Water

Potential new hunting ground for exoplanets discovered

EARLY EARTH
Mystery solved behind birth of Saturn's rings

Last Bits of 2015 Pluto Flyby Data Received on Earth

Uranus may have two undiscovered moons

Possible Clouds on Pluto, Next Target is Reddish









The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.