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needed for heat exchange with the spermaceti organ don't appear to be present; a mechanism of temperature regulation would necessitate high physical exertion while at great depth, which deep-diving animals tend to avoid; sperm whales appear to be highly active during dives, countering the suggestion that buoyancy manipulation would be advantageous because of its benefit in remaining motionless while diving; and the evolution of the spermaceti organ with buoyancy as a selective pressure would be very difficult and is unlikely due to the fact that the organ wouldn't have any impact on buoyancy until it became extremely large in proportion to the body.
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The first has been challenged by many authors, with the following points raised as problematic: the change in density that could be achieved by manipulation of spermaceti oil temperature would likely have a negligible impact on the animal's overall buoyancy; the anatomical features that would be
59:. Its evolution has caused changes in basal skull morphology, which may implicate that a tradeoff was made that compromised the functionality of other features. The high investment in this organ suggests that it has some adaptive advantage, although its function isn't yet clearly understood.
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It assists in controlling buoyancy by manipulating the spermaceti oil's temperature and, consequentially, its density, facilitating deep diving by cooling and surfacing by warming, as well as allowing the animal to remain motionless at great
66:. Historically, the spermaceti oil found within it was used in a variety of products – including lamp oils, candles, and lubricants – providing the economic basis for the
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Cranford, Ted W.; Amundin, Mats; Norris, Kenneth S. (1996). "Functional morphology and homology in the odontocete nasal complex: Implications for sound generation".
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Thus, the hypothesis that the organ aids in echolocation is generally more accepted. Under this hypothesis, it assists in echolocation for
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industry. A sperm whale may contain as much as 1,900 L (420 imp gal; 500 US gal) of this oil.
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during deep dives, allowing the whale to manipulate the sound waves' direction and power to more easily detect prey.
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quality of the sperm whale's nose can be interpreted as an adaptation for deep diving unique to
Physeteroidea.
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The spermaceti organ in sperm whales is shaped like an elongated barrel and sits on top of the whale's
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247:"The nose of the sperm whale: overviews of functional design, structural homologies and evolution"
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81:(toothed whales), with the spermaceti organ homologous to the dorsal bursa in the
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158:(12th ed.). London & New York: The Encyclopædia Britannica Company.
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10.1002/(SICI)1097-4687(199606)228:3<223::AID-JMOR1>3.0.CO;2-3
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186:"A Theory for the Function of the Spermaceti Organ of the Sperm Whale (
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Journal of the Marine
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The morphology of the nasal complex morphology is believed to be
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is an organ present in the heads of toothed whales of the family
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Würsig, Bernd G; Jefferson, Thomas A; Schmidly, David J (2000).
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Two main hypotheses exist for use of the spermaceti organ:
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245:Huggenberger, Stefan; et al. (6 Jul 2014).
184:Norris, Kenneth S.; Harvey, George W. (1972).
173:(1 ed.). Texas A&M University Press.
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43:and is involved in the generation of sound.
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266:10.1017/s0025315414001118
297:Whitehead, Hal (2003).
155:Encyclopædia Britannica
53:Physeter macrocephalus
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212:Journal of Morphology
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