They find a new whale, Tutcetus, “the pharaoh” who died 41 million years ago

A scientific team has discovered in Egypt a new species of extinct whale, “Tutcetus rayanensis”which inhabited an ancient sea about 41 million years ago.

This new whale is the smallest basilosaurid known to date and one of the oldest records of that family in Africa. Despite its small size (2.5 meters), Tutcetus has provided unprecedented data on the life history, phylogeny and paleobiogeography of the first whales, according to the team led by Egyptian researchers.

The Basilosauridaea group of extinct whales, represent a crucial stage in the evolution of these animals in their transition from land to sea, explains a statement from the Center for Vertebrate Paleontology at Mansoura University in Egypt.

They developed fish-like features, such as a streamlined body, strong tail or caudal fin, and had the last hind limbs visible enough to be recognized as “paws”which were not used for walking, but possibly for mating.

“Tutcetus rayanensis” it was found in rocks from the middle Eocene. Its name is inspired both by Egyptian history and by the place where it was found.

The generic name, Tutcetus, combines “Tut” -in reference to the famous Egyptian pharaoh Tutankhamun- and “cetus”whale in Greek, to highlight the small size of the specimen and its condition as a subadult.

The species name, rayanensis, refers to the protected area of ​​Wadi El-Rayan, in Fayum, where the specimen was found, the statement explained.

For Hesham Sallam, project manager, “The evolution of whales from land animals to beautiful sea creatures embodies the wonderful adventurous journey of life.”

“Tutcetus is an extraordinary discovery that documents one of the early phases of the transition to a fully aquatic lifestyle that took place on that voyage.”

The specimen consists of the skull, jaws, hyoid bone, and atlas vertebra of a small subadult basilosaurid whale that is embedded in a heavily compacted limestone block.

With an estimated length of 2.5 meters and a body mass of about 187 kilograms, Tutcetus is the smallest basilosaurid known to date, the researchers say. The findings are published in Communications Biology.

Thanks to detailed analysis of its teeth and bones using computed tomography, the team has been able to reconstruct the pattern of growth and development of this species.

The findings further demonstrate that basilosaurs likely achieved rapid expansion through the southern hemisphere, reaching high latitudes in the mid-Eocene.

Erik Seiffert, from the University of Southern California and co-author of the study, notes: “The Eocene fossil beds of the western desert of Egypt have long been the most important in the world for understanding the early evolution of cetaceans and their transition to a fully aquatic existence”.

“The discovery of Tutcetus shows that this region still has much to tell us about the fascinating history of whale evolution”.

The details of this whale are published a week after meeting another, but this time much larger.

“Perucetus colossus”an ancient species found in Peru, is believed to be one of the largest and heaviest animals on record, according to a Nature study a few days ago, which estimated it could have had a body mass of between 85 and 340 tons.

Estimates of its size and weight, based on a partial skeleton, rival those of the blue whale.

Source: EFE