Did You Know These Animals Cant Smell?

When we think of animals, we automatically assume many things. We may be biased and believe they are better at surviving in the wild, and that they have all evolved to possess a better sense of smell than humans (dogs for example). While the first assumption is mostly true, we are mostly wrong about the second statement. Remarkably, there exists a small percentage of animals who scientists believe can’t smell. Have you ever taken the time to think about which animals might have zero sense of smell? The following post lists the top 3 animals and may surprise you!

1. Whales

Whales are amongst the most amazing creatures on this planet. Their large size conjures up feelings of awe and respect in those who are lucky enough to see them up close. But even with their enormous size, did you know whales lack the development of an olfactory system (mainly nerves and lobes)? These sea creatures do not have any of the structures humans use to express their sense of smell.

Seaworld.org further explains, “Being air-breathing mammals that spend a majority of time under water, a sense of smell would go largely unused in killer whales.”

2. Dolphins

Besides being super friendly and awesome, dolphins also have no sense of smell. Interestingly though, according to this Whalefacts.org article, it’s been discovered that , “While researchers believe that these marine mammals are incapable of smell, dolphins do appear to have olfactory tracts during their fetal stage of development (which is necessary for smell), but once they are born they apparently do not show any olfactory nerves so their sense of smell appears to be non-existent.” How cool is this fact?

3. Porpoise

Porpoises, which look very similar to dolphins, are also assumed to lack the capacity to smell. They too have not developed an olfactory system similar that to of humans that may indicate an ability to pick up on regular scents. Whales, dolphins and porpoises are from the same order, the cetaceans, which may explain why they all share this characteristic.

Bonus Mystery Animal

Now there’s a really special animal (not part of the cetaceans order) I did not include in this article. Maybe you know which one it is? Leave a comment with your answer below. P.S. DM me for a clue on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter

Also: Help Prevent Animal Cruelty!

Now As you all know, I LOVE animals! Animals are such amazing creatures we have to make sure we do our part to protect them. My friend Becky has created an entire resource page that outlines how you can help protect animals against animal cruelty. Check out her page here: https://breedadvisor.com/preventing-animal-cruelty/

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