Eobalaenoptera harrisoni
Encyclopedia
Eobalaenoptera harrisoni is an extinct species of baleen whale
. The species was first described in June 2004 by researchers at the Virginia Museum of Natural History
.
The researchers identified the species from a partial skeleton found in 1990 in Caroline County, Virginia
, the site of a prehistoric ocean, in middle Miocene
Calvert Formation rocks. The 11 m (35 ft) skeleton proved to have similar morphological characteristics to a clade
of whale
s consisting of two modern taxonomic families
- Balaenopteridae (the rorqual
s), and Eschrichtiidae
(a family with one surviving species, the Gray Whale
).
The age of skeleton was estimated to be 14 million years, making the species the oldest known member of the clade by three to five million years. It also considerably narrowed the gap between the earliest known fossil record and estimated time of divergence of this clade from other baleen whales. Molecular studies have put this divergence time at around 25 million years.
The genus name Eobalaenoptera reflects the similarities between this skeleton and species in the genus Balaenoptera such as the Minke Whale
; eo- is a prefix meaning dawn. The species is named after Carter Harrison, a volunteer worker at the museum.
Baleen whale
The Baleen whales, also called whalebone whales or great whales, form the Mysticeti, one of two suborders of the Cetacea . Baleen whales are characterized by having baleen plates for filtering food from water, rather than having teeth. This distinguishes them from the other suborder of cetaceans,...
. The species was first described in June 2004 by researchers at the Virginia Museum of Natural History
Virginia Museum of Natural History
Virginia Museum of Natural History is the state's natural history museum located in Martinsville founded in 1984. The museums has several different award winning publications is affiliated with the Smithsonian Institution, and has more than 22 million items...
.
The researchers identified the species from a partial skeleton found in 1990 in Caroline County, Virginia
Caroline County, Virginia
Caroline County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of 2010, the population was 28,545. Its county seat is Bowling Green. Caroline County is also home to The Meadow stables, the birthplace of the renowned racehorse Secretariat, winner of the 1973 Kentucky Derby, Preakness and...
, the site of a prehistoric ocean, in middle Miocene
Miocene
The Miocene is a geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about . The Miocene was named by Sir Charles Lyell. Its name comes from the Greek words and and means "less recent" because it has 18% fewer modern sea invertebrates than the Pliocene. The Miocene follows the Oligocene...
Calvert Formation rocks. The 11 m (35 ft) skeleton proved to have similar morphological characteristics to a clade
Clade
A clade is a group consisting of a species and all its descendants. In the terms of biological systematics, a clade is a single "branch" on the "tree of life". The idea that such a "natural group" of organisms should be grouped together and given a taxonomic name is central to biological...
of whale
Whale
Whale is the common name for various marine mammals of the order Cetacea. The term whale sometimes refers to all cetaceans, but more often it excludes dolphins and porpoises, which belong to suborder Odontoceti . This suborder also includes the sperm whale, killer whale, pilot whale, and beluga...
s consisting of two modern taxonomic families
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
- Balaenopteridae (the rorqual
Rorqual
Rorquals are the largest group of baleen whales, with nine species in two genera. They include the largest animal that has ever lived, the Blue Whale, which can reach , and another that easily reaches ; even the smallest of the group, the Northern Minke Whale, reaches .-Characteristics:Rorquals...
s), and Eschrichtiidae
Eschrichtiidae
Eschrichtiidae is a family of baleen whales in the suborder Mysticeti.At least five genera are recognised, but only a single species from one genus is still alive, the gray whale, Eschrichtius robustus....
(a family with one surviving species, the Gray Whale
Gray Whale
The gray whale, Eschrichtius robustus, is a baleen whale that migrates between feeding and breeding grounds yearly. It reaches a length of about , a weight of , and lives 50–70 years. The common name of the whale comes from the gray patches and white mottling on its dark skin. Gray whales were...
).
The age of skeleton was estimated to be 14 million years, making the species the oldest known member of the clade by three to five million years. It also considerably narrowed the gap between the earliest known fossil record and estimated time of divergence of this clade from other baleen whales. Molecular studies have put this divergence time at around 25 million years.
The genus name Eobalaenoptera reflects the similarities between this skeleton and species in the genus Balaenoptera such as the Minke Whale
Minke Whale
Minke whale , or lesser rorqual, is a name given to two species of marine mammal belonging to a clade within the suborder of baleen whales. The minke whale was given its official designation by Lacepède in 1804, who described a dwarf form of Balænoptera acuto-rostrata...
; eo- is a prefix meaning dawn. The species is named after Carter Harrison, a volunteer worker at the museum.