Besides the Dodo Bird and Tyrannosaurus Rex, I have discovered a new extinct love: The Sea Cow. Some believe there have been sightings of it in the Bering area and Greenland. I hope that is true. It seems like such a large, loveable beast.
"The sea cow grew at least 8 metres (26 ft)to 9 meters or 30 feet long. According to Steller, "The animal never comes out on shore, but always lives in the water. Its skin is black and thick, like the bark of an old oak…, its head in proportion to the body is small…, it has no teeth, but only two flat white bones—one above, the other below". It was completely tame, according to Steller. They fed on a variety of kelp. Wherever sea cows had been feeding, heaps of stalks and roots of kelp were washed ashore. The sea cow was also a slow swimmer and apparently was unable to submerge.
Fossils indicate that Steller's sea cow was formerly widespread along the North Pacific coast, reaching south to Japan and California. Given the rapidity with which its last population was eliminated, it is likely that aboriginal hunting caused its extinction over the rest of its original range (aboriginal peoples apparently never inhabited the Commander Islands).
No comments:
Post a Comment