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Marine mammals

Life in the sea needs completely different requirements to body shape and physiology. Therefore, hoofed animals (whales, sea cows) and carnivores (pinnipeds) developed specific lungs and blood supply systems to adapt to deep diving, a streamlined body shape with flippers, a fatty tissue (blubber) to keep the body warm, and isolated and pachyosteosclerotic ear bones for directional hearing under water. Using modern digital methods, we explore the evolution of partial adaptations.


Another field of activity is the rich whale fauna from the Miocene mica clay of a gravel pit in Schleswig-Holstein. In addition to the already well known, partially articulated mysticete remains, also teeth, ear bones and vertebrae of ancient sperm whales, almost complete skeletons of early dolphinoids as well as remains of seals were discovered here.


The evolution and diversity of sireniens is another topic of our working group. At the moment we are still investigating sea cow remains from a pavement in Girona, Catalonia/Spain. These slabs come from a quarry near Barcelona, a 40 million years old limestone.

Selected publications

  • Kazár, E. & Hampe, O. 2014. A new species of Kentriodon (Mammalia, Odontoceti, Delphinoidea) from the middle/late Miocene of Groß Pampau (Schleswig-Holstein, North Germany). Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 34(5), 1216-1330.
  • Hampe, O., Franke, H., Hipsley, C.A., Kardjilov, N. & Müller, J. 2015. Prenatal cranial ossification of the humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae). Journal of Morphology 276(5), 564-582.
  • Fahlke, J.M. & Hampe, O. 2015. Cranial symmetry in baleen whales (Cetacea, Mysticeti) and the occurrence of cranial asymmetry throughout cetacean evolution. The Science of Nature – Naturwissenschaften 102(58), 1-16.
  • Voss, M. & Hampe, O. 2017. Evidence for two sympatric sirenian species (Mammalia, Tethytheria) in the early Oligocene of Central Europe. Journal of Paleontology 91(2), 337-367.