A new Early Oligocene toothed ‘baleen’ whale (Mysticeti: Aetiocetidae) from western North America: one of the oldest and the smallest

• Published in: Royal Society Open Science
• Main Authors: Marx, Felix G., Tsai, Cheng-Hsiu, Fordyce, R. Ewan
• Other Authors: Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, University of Otago
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: The Royal Society 2015
• Subjects: Narrows The; baleen whale; baleen whales
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsos.150476; https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/pdf/10.1098/rsos.150476; https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full-xml/10.1098/rsos.150476

Archaic toothed mysticetes represent the evolutionary transition from raptorial to bulk filter feeding in baleen whales. Aetiocetids, in particular, preserve an intermediate morphological stage in which teeth functioned alongside a precursor of baleen, the hallmark of all modern mysticetes. To date,...