| Dhedacetus Temporal range: Middle Eocene,
| |
|---|---|
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Infraclass: | Placentalia |
| Order: | Artiodactyla |
| Infraorder: | Cetacea |
| Family: | †Protocetidae |
| Genus: | †Dhedacetus Bajpai and Thewissen, 2014 |
| Species: | †D. hyaeni
|
| Binomial name | |
| †Dhedacetus hyaeni Bajpai and Thewissen, 2014
| |
Dhedacetus hyaeni is a protocetid cetacean from the middle Eocene (late Lutetian, 42 mya). It is the only species in the genus Dhedacetus.1 The type specimen was recovered from the Indian Harudi Formation near the town of Dhedadi, Kutch.2
Description
Only one skull and some vertebra are known.3 D. hyaeni is the smallest protocetid from Kutch. Its premolars and molars are about the same size as in other protocetids such as Babiacetus, Rodhocetus and Maiacetus. It has a long, broad snout and high ocular orbits.45
The genus name comes from the town close by and the species name comes from a local hyena.1
References
References
- Sunil Bajpai; J.G.M. Thewissen (2014). "Protocetid cetaceans (Mammalia) from the Eocene of India". Palaeontologia Electronica. 17 (3, 34A): 19 p. Archived from the original on 2018-06-12. Retrieved 2019-03-06.
- "Dhedacetus hyaeni". Fossilworks. Retrieved December 17, 2021.
- Thewissen, J. G. M. (2014-11-13). The Walking Whales: From Land to Water in Eight Million Years. Univ of California Press. p. 163. ISBN 9780520277069.
- Berta, Annalisa (2017-10-29). The Rise of Marine Mammals: 50 Million Years of Evolution. JHU Press. p. 159. ISBN 9781421423265.
- Marx, Felix G.; Lambert, Olivier; Uhen, Mark D. (2016-03-29). Cetacean Paleobiology. John Wiley & Sons. p. 100. ISBN 9781118561362.