A big shout out to my coauthors @jakeberv.bsky.social @paleodm.bsky.social and everyone who made this work possible @miamiuniversity.bsky.social

Whales span a range of symphyseal morphologies, varying in degree of mobility (fusion) and length (elongation). In this paper, we examine the evolution of these traits across whale phylogeny and geologic time.

Whales provide an opportunity for studying the morphology of the symphysis as it relates to feeding in an aquatic environment with clear departures from the ancestral feeding mode (i.e. mastication).

In toothed whales, the symphysis ranges from unfused to complete ossification. Baleen whales evolved a decoupled, highly mobile symphysis that represents a novel condition among mammals.

We conduct the first comprehensive morphological investigation of the mandibular symphysis in whales, using gross anatomical observation and CT cross-sectional data to examine diverse joint morphologies across extant and fossil taxa.