Whales are known as the gentle giants of the sea.

Millions of years ago

they where once land mammals. Evolution touches every living thing. It
can change an animal so drastically that whales became such big and
graceful swimmers. While looking for the answers of evolution has lead
to the discovery of Indohyus, the evolution of whales has a"ected many
other animals besides whales, dolphins and the ocean in general.
Evolution has a"ected whales in a dramatic way.


Evolution takes millions of years to occur. The whale took a little less then
15 million years to evolve into what we know today. These changes take
time and are subtle but, these changes help to increase the chances for
the animal to survive. The changes can be the nose moving slightly higher
to increase their ability to come up for air easier(Article 1). The change is
small but, if the animal reproduces the genes would be passed onto the
o"spring. The o"spring would then have a nose slightly higher than it's
parents. Maybe over time if it is necessary for the species survival, their
noses may be on top of their head. The whales changing from Indohyus
are major changes. This ow chart shows the Indohyus and all the
di"erent animals that evolved from it into a whale.


















The discovery of Indohyus provided proof that whales were once land
mammals. In 2007, Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine
scientists, published a report detailing their ndings on a fossil called
Indohyus. This is an ancient animal resembling a small deer(Article 2).
Just as Titalikk did with land, it is believed that Indohyus learned to swim
to get away from predators. This would become an adaptation and it
would progress into changes within it's DNA. Indohyus would then be
able to swim through water with ease. The fossils suggest that Indohyus
was similar to a mini deer and probably waded in the water like a
hippo(Article 4). This is just one way evolution changed the environment in
the ocean.













The ocean changes just as animals do when evolution is happening.
Whales are only a small part of evolution in the ocean. They swim the
deep blue sea but, an ancestor walked on land as seen in the ow chart
below. Indohyus rst changed into a atter four legged creature. This
allowed him to swim and travel through water with ease like an alligator.
Then his DNA changed a little more. He became atter, longer and his feet
had webbing which made him more arrow dynamic in the water. Next
Indohyus got longer, leaner, and his head changed. He also lost his back
legs along with his front legs to ippers. Then his teeth became brissels.
This then a"ected the sh population because whales only eat krill,
therefore the sh population increased tremendously.

Dolphin
Blue Whale
Hippopotamus
















Evolution has changed everything, no matter how small the changes. It
took 15 million years for whales to become what they are today. All it took
was the discovery of a fossil to connect the dots. Not only do animals
evolve, but the environment evolves too. It evolves to support the animal.
Evolution has a"ected whales in a dramatic way.