Ancient Whale from Peru Might Be the Heaviest Animal Ever
Massive fossilsunearthed over a decade ago in the Peruvian desert have now been identified asa new species—an ancient sea giant named Perucetus colossus. This colossal whale from Peru lived about 40 million years ago and was even bigger than today’s blue whale, by farthe largest animal in the world. While not as long as the blue whale, this ancient giant was incredibly heavy due to its dense bones.
Measuring about 20 meters in length, the colossal whale outdid all other animals in terms ofsheer weight, possibly weighing up to 375 tons. This puts it ahead of even the biggest blue whales, which weigh around 200 tons. Giovanni Bianucci, the study’s lead scientist from the University of Pisa in Italy, noted that this ancient giant’s weight surpasses that of any known creature and even some of the mightiest dinosaurs.
