Seals have a unique superpower in their ears, and we finally know how it evolved
Researchers have uncovered the evolutionary secret behind how seals maintain high-functioning hearing both on land and underwater.
Velocity
How fast coverage is spreading — measured hourly from article rate × source diversity. How this works →
The brief
Scientists have solved the mystery of how seals possess the ability to hear in two different environments. According to Phys.org, this is achieved by filtering sound through blood-filled tissue to enable underwater hearing.
Coverage from Oceanographic Magazine, Medianet News Hub, and The Conversation emphasizes the evolutionary nature of this 'superpower,' describing seals as acoustic superheroes that have mastered hearing at sea and on land. Future focus remains on the specific mechanisms of this biological evolution and the functionality of the blood-filled tissue used to filter sound.
Synthesized by Archynetys from the headlines below under a strict no-invention contract. ✓ fact-checked: all claims supported by sources Updated just now.
Quick answers
How do seals hear underwater?
According to Phys.org, seals filter sound through blood-filled tissue.
What is unique about seal hearing?
Coverage describes it as a 'superpower' that allows seals to hear effectively both in the air and underwater.
Where was this discovery reported?
The findings were reported by Oceanographic Magazine, Medianet News Hub, Phys.org, and The Conversation.
Coverage (4)
- Scientists solve mystery of how seals hear in air and underwater Oceanographic Magazine · 18h ago
- Acoustic superheroes: how seals mastered hearing on land and at sea Medianet News Hub · 18h ago
- Seals filter sound through blood-filled tissue to hear underwater, study reveals Phys.org · 18h ago
- Seals have a unique superpower in their ears, and we finally know how it evolved The Conversation · 18h ago
Topics
Related trends
Good at maths and into jazz: Nine extraordinary things you probably didn't know about sharks
World Shark Day and Shark Week activities are shifting public perception from fear of predators to the celebration of shark intelligence and ecology.
Around 252 million years ago, volcanoes across what is now Siberia erupted repeatedly for more than a million years, releasing perhaps 100,000 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide and helping wipe out roughly 90 per cent of marine species in the deadliest mas
Scientists have identified metabolic vulnerability and volcanic carbon emissions as the drivers of the 'Great Dying,' Earth's deadliest mass extinction.
Octopus Brains Defy a Long-Held Rule About Why Animals Evolve Intelligence
Cephalopod intelligence is challenging long-held scientific rules regarding the evolution of brain size and social behavior.
How Infrasound Rewires Ear Mechanics
Recent scientific inquiry identifies the mechanical processes behind human sensitivity to infrasound, explaining why some individuals perceive low-frequency noise.
Earliest animal with a head was also the oldest known ‘righty’
A 550-million-year-old fossil may reveal the earliest instance of right-handedness in the animal kingdom.
These Animals Were Righties Long Before Hands Even Evolved
Scientists have discovered that the earliest known animal with a head exhibited right-handed behavior.