Remingtonocetus

Remingtonocetus harudiensis

Resurrected on:

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Genus information

Remingtonocetus is a genus of very primitive whale that lived during the Eocene epoch of India. During that time, India was part of the shoreline of the Tethys Ocean. Remingtonocetus probably lived in rivers close these shores. It had a long snout, four legs and a long tail. It was very well adapted to a live in the water, but its legs were still able to walk on land. In 2011, a study showed that the skull of Remingtonocetus was perfect for an ambush predator and used its hearing to detect prey.

Family:

Distribution:

Epoch:

Remingtonocetidae

Asia

Eocene

Species information

The genus of Remingtonocetus contains two species of which fossils of R. haridiensis were found in India. The other species, R. domandaensis, is known from Pakistan. Remingtonocetus was a fairly large species of primitive whale, reaching up to 3.4 meters in length. Its skull alone was already 70 cm long!

Species:

Paleontologist:

Distribution:

Epoch:

Remingtonocetus harudiensis

Sahni & Mishra, 1975

Asia

Eocene

Length:

Height:

Weight:

3.4 m

n/a

1.000 kg

Reference:

A. Sahni and V. P. Mishra. 1975. Lower Tertiary vertebrates from western India. Monograph of the Palaeontological Society of India 3:1-48