Kingdom Animalia Infraorder Cetacea Subfamily †Herpetocetinae Rank Genus | Class Mammalia Family Cetotheriidae Phylum Chordata Order Even-toed ungulate | |
Similar Piscobalaena, Cetotheriidae, Diorocetus, Cetotherium, Miocaperea | ||
Metopocetus is an extinct genus of baleen whale belonging to the family Cetotheriidae. The type species is Metopocetus durinasus.
Contents
Description
Metopocetus is diagnosable by lateral occipital crests continuous with temporal crests that diverge forward, as well as elongate frontals, and short nasal bones that project posterior to frontals.
Location
Metopocetus durinasus is known only from the middle Miocene (Langhian) Calvert Beach Member of the Calvert Formation of Westmoreland County, Virginia. Its type specimen is USNM 8518. On the other hand, Metopocetus hunteri is based on a partial cranium from the Breda Formation of the Netherlands.
References
Metopocetus Wikipedia(Text) CC BY-SA