The bone tissue of the rostrum of a Mesoplodon densirostris whale:: a mammalian biomineral demonstrating extreme texture

The mechanical properties and the possible biological use of the extremely dense bone of the rostrum of the toothed whale Mesoplodon densirostris were studied. Bone tissue has three main components: mineral, organic material and water, the organic material being mainly collagen. To demonstrate where the rostrum lies in respect to its mineralization and comparatively to other tissues, an ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) was used to dissolve the mineral and to calculate the three weight fractions. The rostrum appears to be at the every end of a process that both in ontogeny and phylogeny tends to remove water and collagen in favor of the mineral.