Masracetus

Mas-r-ah-see-tus.
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Nisha Yadav

Physicist

Nisha Yadav is a dedicated physicist whose work bridges the gap between physics and paleontology. With a deep interest in the processes that preserve ancient life, she explores how physical principles govern fossilization and the preservation of extinct species.

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Name

Masracetus ‭(‬Egypt whale‭)‬.

Phonetic

Mas-r-ah-see-tus.

Named By

P.‭ ‬D.‭ ‬Gingerich‭ ‬-‭ ‬2007.

Classification

Chordata,‭ ‬Mammalia,‭ ‬Cetacea,‭ ‬Archaeoceti,‭ ‬Basilosauridae.

Diet

Carnivore/Piscivore.

Species

M.‭ ‬markgrafi‭

Size

‭Very roughly estimated about 10 meters long.

Known locations

Egypt‭ ‬-‭ ‬Birket Qarun Formation,‭ ‬Daba'a Formation,‭ ‬Gehannam Formation.

Time Period

Priabonian of the Eocene.

Fossil representation

Partial skull and vertebrae.

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 from a combination of the Arabic word for Egypt‭ ‘‬Masr‭’‬,‭ ‬and the Greek for whale‭ ‘‬ketos‭’‬,‭ ‬while the type species name,‭ ‬M.‭ ‬markgrafi is in honour of Richard Markgraf who discovered the type specimen of Masracetus all the way back in‭ ‬1905,‭ ‬over one hundred years before it was named as a distinct genus.

Further Reading

-‭ ‬Stromerius nidensis,‭ ‬New Archaeocete‭ (‬Mammalia,‭ ‬Cetacea‭) ‬From The Upper Eocene Qasr El-Sagha Formation,‭ ‬Fayum,‭ ‬Egypt.‭ ‬-‭ ‬31‭(‬13‭)‬:363-378.‭ ‬-‭ ‬P.‭ ‬D.‭ ‬Gingerich‭ ‬-‭ ‬2007. -‭ ‬Dentary of Masracetus markgrafi,‭ ‬Archaeocete in the north of Lake Qaroun,‭ ‬Fayoum Egypt.‭ ‬-‭ ‬Journal of Amercian Science.‭ ‬-‭ ‬Gebely A.‭ ‬Abu-El-kheir,‭ ‬Mohammed I.‭ ‬El Anbaawy,‭ ‬Sobhi A.‭ ‬Helal‭ & ‬Susan Gibbs‭ ‬-‭ ‬2013.

SPECIES SPOTLIGHT