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Archaeocete Whale Archaeocete Whale
Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History
Washington, DC, United States
Basilosaurus was an archaic whale that lived during the late eocene 40–35 million years ago. A streamlined body and paddle-like forelimbs show it was a fast swimmer. Saw-edged teeth suggest it hunted. Small hind limbs reveal that it descended from land-dwellers.
Scientists who discovered Basilosaurus first thought it was a reptile and named it “regal lizard.” Today we know it was a mammal.
This whale fossil came from Scott County, Mississippi. It is one of many partial Basilosaurus skeletons that have been found in Mississippi and Alabama.
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Details
- Title: Archaeocete Whale Archaeocete Whale
- Location: Choctaw County, Alabama, United States, North America
- Type: Fossil
- Rights: This image was obtained from the Smithsonian Institution. The image or its contents may be protected by international copyright laws. http://www.si.edu/termsofuse
- External Link: View this object record in the Smithsonian Institution Collections Search Center
- USNM Catalog Number(s): V4675, V4675
- Scientific Name: <i>Basilosaurus cetoides</i>, <i>Basilosaurus cetoides</i>
- Photo Credit: Chip Clark, Smithsonian Institution National Museum of Natural History
- Geologic Age: Cenozoic - Paleogene – Eocene
- Field: Paleobiology
- Date Collected: 1894-11-08
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