Gizmodo: On the Heels of a Heavy Whale, Paleontologists Find a Puny One https://gizmodo.com/paleontologists-unearth-puny-basilosaurid-whale-1850724538 #evolutionofcetaceans #basilosauridae #basilosaurus #heshamsallam #erikseiffert #environment #tutankhamun #spermwhales #rayanensis #cetaceans #eliamson #cetacea #whale #t #p

Satirical long-necked #Basilosaurus illustration produced by Anthonie Cornelis Oudemans in his book “The Great Sea-Serpent”. The context is that Mr. Searles V. Wood Jr. speculated — in the journal Nature! — about Basilosaurus being responsible for long-necked #SeaSerpent sightings. Seemingly he had no access to a skeletal (?!?)

#AncientWhaleWeek

Link:
https://www.nature.com/articles/023054a0

Reconstruction of #Basilosaurus from Cleland’s 1916 “Geology”

vs.

My own attempt to give Basilosaurus the correct number of vertebrae and an appropriate amount of soft tissue.

#AncientWhaleWeek #Whales #Cetaceans

For #AncientWhaleWeek I’d like celebrate how much better reconstructs have gotten over the years. This #Basilosaurus is from Roy Mackal’s 1980 “Searching for Hidden Animals” and uh… it looks seriously unprofessional to modern eyes (and doesn’t follow the skeleton whatsoever).

Skeletal is from:
https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/figure?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0209021.g001

On #WorldWhaleDay spare a thought for all the extinct prehistoric whales.

There are 8 toys in the whale category on the Dinosaur Toy Blog so far, including several versions of the serpent-like and mistakenly named whale Basilosaurus, and the appropriately named sperm-whale relative Livyatan: https://dinotoyblog.com/classification/whale/

#DinoToyBlog #whales #toys #PNSO #Basilosaurus

A large primitive whale tooth #fossil of a #basilosaurid from the Samlat Formation in the Sahara Desert. These #Eocene aged teeth are commonly marketed as #Basilosaurus. Unlike most basilosaurid teeth, this specimen is not composited, though glue had been applied to keep the pieces together.

Today's #megafauna is Basilosaurus! This Eocene #whale was about 60 feet long and sported tiny hind limbs. It is possible that the hind limbs were used to hold onto partners during mating, though they were disconnected from the rest of the whale skeleton and could not have supported weight on land. Basilosaurus's elongated shape and small tail flukes suggest that it swam by moving most of its body up and down--not just its tail.

Although this may sound like a silly mode of transportation, #Basilosaurus was the apex #preadtor of its time. With strong jaw muscles, large incisors, and serrated molars at the back of its mouth, this whale proved a formidable foe for #fish, #sharks, and even other #MarineMammals.

At Whale Valley--a rich source of marine fossils that was likely an Eocene nesting ground--#fossil evidence paints a picture of Basilosaurus's hunting habits. Nesting fossils show the contents of its stomach, and specimens of another whale species, dorodon, show bite marks consistent with Basilosaurus's teeth. Most dorodon fossils nested in Basilosaurus skeletons are juveniles--suggesting that Basilosaaurus lurked near these nesting grounds, targeting young dorodons just as modern #orcas target the calves of other whales.

Luca and Maila are having a blast! Just dance like nobody cares!
#FurryArt #palaeoart #AnthroArt #MastoArt #dunkleosteus #basilosaurus #couple #furry #anthro #TraditionalArt #fediverse

https://l3v3n.artstation.com/projects/d03av1

My current project #basilosaurus #paleoart #dinosaur #whale