In talking about senses, we tend to narrow our concentration to the five common ones: sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch. However, some animals have evolved beyond these five basic senses and developed other senses that aid their survival and hunting success. Dolphins and sharks are two of the animals often described as possessing “7 senses.”
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Dolphins: The Seventh Sense of Electroreception
Generally, more specifically, the bottlenose dolphin has been found to have a seventh sense that allows them to detect electrical fields. That sense is electroreception, one similar to that of sharks and other sea creatures. Researchers from the Marine Science Center of the University of Rostock in Germany performed studies, which revealed that the bottlenose dolphin can recognize electric fields that could allow them to find food that is buried deep in the sea.
It is also aided by sensors resembling cat or seal whiskers. These sensors, in the vibrissal crypts on the dolphin’s snout, become electroreceptors at birth and thus enable dolphins to detect the electrical fields produced by the heartbeat and the pulsation of muscles in their prey. It is this seventh sense that they use to align themselves to the Earth’s magnetic field-a phenomenon known as electromagnetic induction.
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Sharks: Masters of the Seven Senses
Sharks and their well-developed and sensitive senses that many call the “7 senses of sharks.” Besides the standard five senses, sharks possess two more senses without which they couldn’t survive: electroreception and the lateral line system.
The most interesting of these are the sense organs that detect electroreceptions, which are mediated by the Ampullae of Lorenzini. These specialist sensory organs allow sharks to detect the feeble electrical fields caused by all living animals, including heartbeats and the movement in muscles of their prey. Such is the precision that sharks can even locate food that’s buried or hidden from their owners.
Sharks possess a special sense property- smell, hearing, and vision. Their eyes contain a light booster known as the Tapetum lucidum, which makes them have the ability to see much better in the dark than cats. Its sense of smell is so sensitive that sharks would be able to detect a drop of blood in an Olympic-sized swimming pool. Their hearing is super-sensitive to low frequency vibrations, hence they could pick up a struggling fish from considerable distances.
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The Evolutionary Advantage
Such adaptations like dolphins and sharks’ additional sense owe testimony to the evolutionary pressures that push species to better adapt in their environment. For marine predators, electrical field detection or even magnetic field navigation may be the difference between survival or starvation.
Which animal has the seven senses? The answer is hidden in the incredible ability of dolphins and sharks. Their sensory system surpasses all the animals on earth. With such diverse environments for which they have developed, they have an additional sense, contributing to their great ability to hunt effectively as well as move without confusion or misdirection.
Some other Extraordinary Sense Animals
Among the other creatures, dolphins and sharks are the most famous examples of the seventh sense due to their special sensory abilities, but there are even greater instances. For instance, electroreception enables a platypus to find its prey in deep waters, while bats use echolocation to navigate and hunt in the dark.
Conclusion
The concept of a seventh sense in an animal like a dolphin or shark is not only a step closer to deepening our appreciation for the complexity and diversity of life but also insightful into how remarkable adaptations were constructed over millions of years. Which animal has 7 senses? In a world crowded with all kinds of superstars, there are always two unpretentious animals that stand out: dolphins and sharks, who have an extraordinary ability to detect electrical fields and thus clearly take over a unique advantage in their respective domains of environment and habitat.
The more we discover and know about the natural world, the greater the possibility of discovering the extraordinary abilities that these animals have, which break our current understanding of perception and navigation. The seven senses of the animals are much more than a study; they are the secret to their survival and aptitude to survive in a world filled with challenges and opportunities. Which animal has 7 senses? The clearly big winners of this process are the dolphins and sharks, which demonstrate the wonderful flexibility and survival ability of life.
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