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Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science pp 1–3Cite as

Mammalian Ear, The

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Synonyms

Ears of mammals

Definition

The evolution of the mammalian ear and the comparative research with the ears of humans.

Introduction

In order to understand the evolution of the human ear, we must trace its origins and comparison in the mammalian lineage. Therefore, to identify the changes in the hearing capacity of the evolution of humans, a comparison had to be made to the evolution of other mammals (Masterton et al. 1968). It was concluded that high frequency hearing (>32 kHz) is a trait that characterizes mammals. This was due to the short distance of their ears, and the result for the selective pressure to know the accurate source of brief sounds. Sounds with a low frequency (<1 kHz) is a trait that characterizes all mammals, especially humans (Masterton et al. 1968).

The Eutherian Mammalian Ear

Regarding the evolution of the eutherian mammalian ear, Manley (2017) distinguished that during the Paleozoic era (>250 million years ago), the synapsids were no longer under the stem...

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References

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Nicosia, Nicosia, Cyprus

    Michael Khalil

Authors
  1. Michael Khalil
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Michael Khalil .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Oakland University, Rochester, Michigan, USA

    Todd K. Shackelford

  2. Rochester, Michigan, USA

    Viviana A. Weekes-Shackelford

Section Editor information

  1. University of Nicosia, Nicosia, Cyprus

    Menelaos Apostolou

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Khalil, M. (2018). Mammalian Ear, The. In: Shackelford, T., Weekes-Shackelford, V. (eds) Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_985-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_985-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-16999-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-16999-6

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