Tiny Triassic Predator Could Hear a Whisper, Redrawing Mammal Hearing’s Timeline
A PNAS study using CT-based 3D models and vibration simulations suggests Thrinaxodon could hear faint sounds across 38–1,243 Hz (optimal ~1,000 Hz at 28 dB), indicating tympanic hearing with jaw-attached ear bones and pointing to an earlier stage in mammal-like hearing after the end-Permian extinction.