In Depth As a member of the Basilosauridae, Masracetus was a relative of the famous Basilosaurus, and comparable in terms of skull size and body width. However, as in other relative genera such as Cynthiacetus, the vertebrae of Masracetus were much shorter than the vertebrae of Basilosaurus, indicating a proportionately shorter body. Masracetus was named … Read more
In Depth The one thing about Basilosaurus that instantly causes confusion is its name. When first studied and named by Richard Harlan, he came to the conclusion that it was most likely a marine reptile, and so named it Basilosaurus, or ‘King lizard’. It was not until the remains were studied by Richard Owen that … Read more
In Depth Zygorhiza belongs to the same group of primitive prehistoric whales as Dorudon and both of these whales are more distantly related to the massive Basilosaurus which was quite possibly a predator of both of these whales. Although similar in form to Basilosaurus, Zygorhiza had a much smaller body that was actually more in … Read more
In Depth Dorudon is a good example of some of the many primitive whales that were swimming in the world’s oceans during the Eocene period. As an early cetacean, Dorudon was a dedicated predator of other marine creatures that may have included everything from fish to other marine mammals. Dorudon itself does bear a strong … Read more
In Depth Himalayacetus is one of if not the oldest archaeocetid whale currently known to us. Unfortunately at the time of writing the only part of this primitive whale that we have is a partial jaw, but this is still enough to identify Himalayacetus as a relative of the better known Ambulocetus. Himalayacetus should not … Read more
In Depth Although not as well known as Pakicetus and Ambulocetus, Rodhocetus is nonetheless important to the study of how whales evolved from land animals. Rodhocetus is but one of a slowly but steadily growing number of transitional fossil genera, but in Rodhocetus the change can actually be seen across the species as well. … Read more
In Depth Xenorophus was a predatory whale that so far has only been found in the marine fossil Formations of South Carolina. Xenorophus is also the type genus of the Xenorophidae which also includes Albertocetus and Archaeodelphis. Further Reading - Description of an apparently new toothed cetacean from South Carolina - R. Kellogg - 1923.
In Depth Carolinacetus is a genus of protocetid whale known to have lived around what is now South Carolina during the later half of the Eocene. Carolinacetus appears to have been slightly larger than other protocetids such as Georgiacetus, while also being one of the more primitive protocetid genera known from North America. Further Reading … Read more
In Depth Indocetus is a genus of protocetid whale that was first name from the discovery of a partial skull from the Harudi Formation of India in 1975. In 1993 new whale fossils from the Domanda Formation of Pakistan were added to the Indocetus genus, and this was a significant development since these were the … Read more
In Depth Gaviacetus is usually interpreted as a protocetid, a very primitive kind of whale that would have still possessed legs for terrestrial locomotion, though in the past Gaviacetus has also been considered to be a possible basilosaurid. However, at the time of writing there is little evidence to conclusively prove that Gaviacetus was a … Read more