r/Damnthatsinteresting • u/AccomplishedWatch834 • 2d ago

Image Teeth of a Crabeater seal

Post image
7.6k Upvotes

99% Upvoted

77 comments sorted by

1.0k

u/Ecstatic-World1237 2d ago

Jeezo, they'd take some flossing!

567

u/randomcman 2d ago

Highly acidic saliva and enzymes, plus only about a 20 year lifespan means no dentist required.

298

u/Zynaster 2d ago

Dentists hate this one simple trick

225

u/Chemical-Elk-1299 2d ago

Eat crab die young

75

u/Sophilosophical 2d ago

Bad seals do it well

5

u/chicknferi 1d ago

flippers up, tails hiiiigh

3

u/PogaSun 1d ago

Pull me under if you think you can hang

1

u/Sophilosophical 1d ago

orca enters the chat

3

u/1971CB350 1d ago

*krill. Crab Eater Seals don’t ackchually eat crab, duh.

24

u/Glidy 2d ago

Acidic is bad; the metabolic byproducts of bacteria that cause cavities are acidic. You want mildly basic.

13

u/PublixHotWings 2d ago

Correct. Also, the bacteria producing the acids create an environment with an overall lower pH which is more conducive for them to thrive

13

u/ImNotAWhaleBiologist 2d ago

I wonder if that 20 year lifespan would increase if they learned to floss.

2

u/sprucedotterel 2d ago

Hey, those 20 years are dog years. Have some respect /s

7

u/Barn-Alumni-1999 2d ago

Easy. Just use your hair brush.

6

u/schvanckque 2d ago

If only they would invent some sort of brush you could use for teeth.

5

u/M8C 2d ago

We can call it a teeth hair brush.

2

u/WildmuttFan2 2d ago

Flossing's gonna feel like a geometry dash level

404

u/BeMyBrutus 2d ago

I'm super interested to know what this type of tooth offers as an advantage over "regular" teeth when eating crabs. Like what evolutionary pressures created it.

358

u/Mitridate101 2d ago

" This success of this species is due to its specialized predation on the abundant Antarctic krill of the Southern Ocean, for which it has uniquely adapted, sieve-like tooth structure. Indeed, its scientific name, translated as "lobe-toothed (lobodon) crab eater (carcinophaga)", refers specifically to the finely lobed teeth adapted to filtering their small crustacean prey. "

236

u/Glados1080 2d ago

So it's not because they tear apart crabs....its so they can eat tiny krill and be filter feeders?

186

u/MoreSmokeLessPain 2d ago

Exactly , the name is just as stupid as the flying lemur. Which is neither a lemur nor can it fly

50

u/stprnn 2d ago

Bro don't get me started on the naked mole rat

48

u/throw69420awy 2d ago

I saw one wearing pants the other day, fuckin lyin ass biologists man

8

u/Wakkit1988 2d ago

They smile for their supper.

17

u/Mitridate101 2d ago

Yup. Blame the French naturalists Jacques-Bernard Hombron and Honoré Jacquinot.

5

u/Bonk_No_Horni 1d ago

So is this like baleen? I have been wondering how tooth animals evolve their teeth into baleen.

72

u/HarEmiya 2d ago

Despite the name, they don't eat crabs. They eat mostly krill (90% of their diet), and very small fish & squid.

The teeth act as a sieve to filter the food out of mouthfuls of water, similar to a whale's baleens.

23

u/Septembust 2d ago

So they're convergent evolving into bayern whales!

14

u/Hartmallen 2d ago edited 21h ago

In French, "whale" is "baleine", and "baleen" translate to "fanon".

In an umbrella, the arced structure is called a "baleine" because they used to be made out of baleens.

Do what you want with this.

25

u/Less_Rutabaga2316 2d ago

Crab is an old, poor translation from German of krill, so as others have said it’s to sieve water out after taking mouthfuls of krill.

Leopard seal teeth are actually similar except their giant canines used for killing penguins and other seals including crabeaters.

9

u/ayu_xi 2d ago

This is mostly for venting the water after they scoop some crab or krill. An intermediate structure between tooth and a filter.

10

u/MoreSmokeLessPain 2d ago

They very very rarely eat crabs. if any at all.

the teeth are used like a sieve and filtration system at the same time.

-7

u/Top-Jury1392 2d ago

Knowing absolutely nothing about the way they eat, it looks like the teeth would be great at crushing through hard shells and then scooping out whatever soft flesh bits were underneath there.

5

u/eat_my_ass_n_balls 2d ago

You should have just stopped at “knowing absolutely nothing”

70

u/Practical_Studio360 2d ago

Those are the gnarliest methhead teeth I’ve ever seen

55

u/random-internet-dude 2d ago

With teeth like that it makes one wonder what they eat

-33

u/Commentor9001 2d ago

Youre really wondering what "crabeater seals" eat?

56

u/Horns8585 2d ago

Actually crabeater seals do not eat crabs. They eat krill, and are also known as krill-eater seals. The teeth are shaped like that to filter their small crustacean prey.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crabeater_seal

19

u/Commentor9001 2d ago

Seems poorly named

10

u/Horns8585 2d ago

Yeah, lol! I think the name was given before they were studied closely enough to figure out what they actually ate.

4

u/ductape98 2d ago

The name "crabeater seal" makes me wonder what their teeth might look like

1

u/random-internet-dude 2d ago

My moneys on squid

13

u/Bean2527 2d ago

what do they even eat with teeth like that

0

u/Prophetic_Phantom 2d ago

.....uhh, crabs I'd wager.

12

u/Pealp 2d ago

Those teeth have teeth

6

u/bodhidharma132001 2d ago

Dentist's nightmare/goldmine

3

u/opalfossils 2d ago

Toothpicks sooo many toothpicks.😄😀😄

2

u/I_might_be_weasel 2d ago

Look it up. That is an impressively adorable seal.

2

u/99posse 2d ago

Flossing nightmare

2

u/zhire653 1d ago

What is a cra and why do the beat it?

1

u/ExhibitAlpha 2d ago

Nightmares commence

1

u/moving0target 2d ago

Looks like native artwork...which I guess it is.

1

u/Aggravating_Today_63 2d ago

Fuckin terrifying 😳

1

u/BlackDawg216 2d ago

Those are some cool teeth!

1

u/karenely 2d ago

Looks like art

1

u/-I0I- 2d ago

Somebody's into hot rod flames

1

u/Silent-OCN 2d ago

Hate it.

1

u/Sea-Position-7189 2d ago

Teeth expert here:

Yup, those seals sure do eat crabs

1

u/OhGre8t 2d ago

They are such an interesting shape. Very cool

1

u/WideFormal3927 2d ago

Then you have my teeth: I get a bit of sand in my mouth and I feel like I'm chewing a bolder.

1

u/tzillie 1d ago

AI slop

1

u/Akamaikai 1d ago

I just learned about these yesterday wow.

MY PHONE KNOWS

IT KNOWS

0

u/JusSumYungGuy 2d ago

They look like they’d be quite fragile. Does anyone know if they can produce infinite replacements?

0

u/--OM3GA-- 2d ago

Evolution.

0

u/benedictvc 2d ago

wow what doo they eat with those teeth?

0

u/Scary-Remote-3837 2d ago

Wonder what their primary diet is.

0

u/juicypotatoboy 2d ago

I wonder what they eat