I know this is an unpopular opinion, but even though dolphins are objectively cute, they really freak me out.

It’s because, despite their fins and living in water, they remind me just a little too much of human beings.

If dolphins unsettle you, too, the news that they use their teeth for more than eating isn’t going to help matters.

The average human has only 32 teeth, compared to as many as 240 in dolphins, depending on the species. Some have far fewer, but regardless of how many are in there, scientists now believe their teeth could assist with echolocation – or helping dolphins hear underwater.

Japanese researchers dug into the structure and function of the tissues surrounding dolphin teeth in both bottlenose and striped dolphins, then compared them to other animals.

They found that the dolphins’ dental structures contain spongier alveolar bone (the one that holes the teeth) than what is found in other animals. Their teeth are also generally larger and looser.

Dolphins and other mammals possess a unique ligament structure in which fibers in the inner layer spread out from the root of the tooth. In dolphins, though, the fibers in the outer layer penetrate the spongy bone in a unique way.

There are thick bundles of long nerve fibers in between the two layers, and some look like sensory receptors that allow electrochemical signals to travel through them a a quicker pace.

Researchers believe that, taken together, these variations suggest dolphins’ teeth enable them to detect changes in their environment, much like cats use their whiskers.

Researcher Ryo Kodera told New Scientist that the fibers show “significant tooth mobility” and that the thick nerve bundles indicate “heightened sensitivity to tooth movement.”

The researchers think more study needs to be done in order to say conclusively what sense the differences might impact, but Kodera and his team suspect it helps dolphins hear better underwater.

“Our findings support the hypothesis that dolphins utilize their teeth as part of an advanced sound reception system.”

Just one more reason dolphins are super unique.

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