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 Though only known from a partial skull and jaws, Saghacetus is known to have been a dorudontine whale that was hunting in the waters of Egypt during the Eocene. Before being established as a distinct genus, fossils of Saghacetus had been described as species of Dorudon. The exact size of Saghacetus is uncertain, … Read more
In Depth Cynthiacetus was very similar to the famous Basilosaurus, one of the largest and most famous of the primitive archaeocetid whales. In fact the skull of Cynthiacetus is very similar to the skull of Basilosaurus in both size and form, but Cynthiacetus is known to be different by the simple observation that the vertebrae … Read more
In Depth Stromerius is a genus of basilosaurid whale that has been discovered in the world famous fossil deposits of Egypt, some of which are well known for turning up the fossils of whales. Unfortunately the harsh environmental conditions there can quickly erode exposed fossils, and as for the case of Stromerius, only some of … Read more
In Depth A relative of other primitive whales such as Dorudon and Zygorhiza, Ancalecetus would have been a toothed predatory whale that hunted other marine organisms for food. In fact, Ancalecetus is seen to be very similar to Dorudon atrox with the exception of the fore limbs of Ancalecetus being much smaller and closer to … Read more