This hypothesis was proposed due to similarities between the unusual triangular teeth of the mesonychians and those of early whales. However, molecular phylogeny data indicates that whales …

Hippos likely evolved from a group of anthracotheres about 15 million years ago, the first whales evolved over 50 million years ago, and the ancestors of both these groups were terrestrial.

The Whale Family Tree (Mary Parrish/Smithsonian Institution) This family tree shows how the ancestors of whales moved gradually from land to sea. Early whales took advantage of abundant marine …

Hippos are the closest living relatives of whales, but they are not the ancestors of whales. Both hippos and whales evolved from four-legged, even-toed, hoofed (ungulate) ancestors that lived on land …

Although whales are expert swimmers and perfectly adapted to life underwater, these marine mammals once walked on four legs. Their land-dwelling ancestors lived about 50 million years ago.

Aug 1, 2025 · Molecular biology has since confirmed the connection: DNA analysis shows that whales are most closely related to hippos, their closest living relatives. Both descend from a group of hoofed …

Three groups of cetaceans arose from the land-dwelling ancestor or ancestors. The earliest group, the Archaeoceti, or ancient whales, died out about 20 million years ago.

Jul 23, 2025 · The story of whale evolution is written in fossilized ear bones and modern DNA, linking ocean giants to their unexpected land-dwelling ancestors.

Scientists have long known that cetaceans (whales, dolphins, and porpoises) descended from four-footed land mammals. Cetaceans still have some features of land mammals; they use lungs to …

Jul 23, 2025 · Though whales have evolved into the charismatic megafauna we know today, Wadi Al-Hitan is brimming with proof that whales had a long, laborious journey to the form they now embody.