Paleontologist Mario Urbina poses for a photo next to the vertebrae of a newly found species named Perucetus colossus, or “the colossal whale from Peru," during a presentation in Lima, Peru, Wednesday, Aug. 2, 2023. The bones were first discovered more than a decade ago by Urbina from the University of San Marcos’ Natural History Museum. An international team spent years digging them out from the side of a steep, rocky slope in the Ica desert, a region in Peru that was once underwater and is known for its rich marine fossils.

NEW YORK — There could be a new contender for heaviest animal to ever live. While today’s blue whale has long held the title, scientists have dug up fossils from an ancient giant that could tip the scales.

Researchers described the species — named Perucetus colossus, or “the colossal whale from Peru” — in the journal Nature on Wednesday. Each vertebra weighs over 220 pounds and its ribs measure nearly 5 feet long.

“It’s just exciting to see such a giant animal that’s so different from anything we know,” said Hans Thewissen, a paleontologist at Northeast Ohio Medical University who had no role in the research.

The bones were discovered more than a decade ago by Mario Urbina from the University of San Marcos’ Natural History Museum in Lima. An international team spent years digging them out from the side of a steep, rocky slope in the Ica desert, a region in Peru that was once underwater and is known for its rich marine fossils. The results: 13 vertebrae from the whale’s backbone, four ribs and a hip bone.

The massive fossils, which are 39 million years old, “are unlike anything I’ve ever seen,” said study author Alberto Collareta, a paleontologist at Italy’s University of Pisa.

After the excavations, the researchers used 3D scanners to study the surface of the bones and drilled into them to peek inside. They used the huge — but incomplete — skeleton to estimate the whale’s size and weight, using modern marine mammals for comparison, said study author Eli Amson, a paleontologist at the State Museum of Natural History in Stuttgart, Germany.

They calculated that the ancient giant weighed somewhere between 94 and 375 tons. The biggest blue whales found have been within that range — at around 180 metric tons.

Its body stretched to around 66 feet long. Blue whales can be longer — with some growing to more than 100 feet in length.

This means the newly discovered whale was “possibly the heaviest animal ever,” Collareta said, but “it was most likely not the longest animal ever.”

It weighs more in part because its bones are much denser and heavier than a blue whale’s, Amson explained.

Those super-dense bones suggest that the whale may have spent its time in shallow, coastal waters, the authors said. Other coastal dwellers, like manatees, have heavy bones to help them stay close to the seafloor.

Without the skull, it’s hard to know what the whale was eating to sustain such a huge body, Amson said.

It’s possible that P. colossus was scavenging for food along the seafloor, researchers said, or eating up tons of krill and other tiny sea creatures in the water.

But “I wouldn’t be surprised if this thing actually fed in a totally different way that we would never imagine,” Thewissen added.

Somalian sports minister apologizes after slow 100-meter runner goes viral

MOGADISHU, Somalia — Somalia’s sports minister publicly apologized Wednesday, Aug. 2, and ordered that the chairwoman of the national track and field federation be suspended after a seemingly untrained female sprinter represented the African country at the World University Games in China and took more than 20 seconds to finish a 100-meter race.

Minister of Youth and Sports Mohamed Barre Mohamud said his ministry did not know how 20-year-old Nasra Abukar Ali was selected to compete in the women’s 100 at the student games in Chengdu on Aug. 1.

The ministry separately released a statement directing the Somalia Olympic Committee to suspend national athletics federation chairwoman Khadija Aden Dahir amid allegations that Nasra Abukar was a relative of hers and was given the chance to compete at the games because of that.

Somalia’s university union said it had not sent any runners to China as part of an official Somali team.

A video of the agonizingly slow run by Nasra Abukar was shared across social media and Mohamud said that the performance was embarrassing for Somalia.

In her qualifying race, Nasra Abukar was immediately left behind by the other runners and finished about 10 seconds after the winner. Despite being dead last, she did a little skip in the air as she crossed the finish line.

Miami Marlins are selling $5 hamburgers to celebrate acquisition of Jake Burger

MIAMI — The Miami Marlins put together a whopper of a promotion to welcome trade deadline acquisition Jake Burger.

The Marlins celebrated the slugger and his appetizing last name by offering $5 hamburgers for their game Aug. 2 against the Philadelphia Phillies.

Burger, a power-hitting infielder, was acquired from the Chicago White Sox shortly before the Aug. 1 trade deadline. Miami hopes he can provide a jolt to the lineup after he slugged 25 homers for the White Sox, tied for ninth in the majors entering Aug. 2.

“I am ready to play some fun baseball here and compete for a playoff spot,” said Burger, who had spent his entire pro career with Chicago. “My wife was hyping me up today saying, ‘Have fun at your first day of school!’ You get to meet all these new people and it is exciting.”

The 27-year-old Burger — a childhood friend of Florida Panthers star Matthew Tkachuk — added that he’s good with the nickname “SmashBurger.”

Burger was set to bat sixth in Miami’s lineup Wednesday and start at third base.