Notocetus

Notocetus is an extinct genus of river dolphin belonging to Squalodelphinidae. Known specimens have been found in Early Miocene marine deposits from Argentina, Italy and Peru.[1][2]

Notocetus
Temporal range: Early Miocene
~20.43–16 Ma
↓
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Artiodactyla
Infraorder: Cetacea
Family: †Squalodelphinidae
Genus: †Notocetus
Moreno, 1892
Species:
†N. vanbenedeni
Binomial name
†Notocetus vanbenedeni
Moreno, 1892
Synonyms
  • Argyrodelphis Lydekker, 1894
  • Diochotichus Ameghino, 1894
  • Diochoticus Ameghino, 1894

Taxonomy

Notocetus was unnecessarily given the replacement name Diochoticus by Ameghino (1894) on the false assumption that Notocetus was preoccupied by Notiocetus. Lydekker (1894), meanwhile erected Argyrodelphis for the same specimen.[3][4] The type species of Otekaikea was once considered a species of Notocetus before being recognized as belonging to Waipatiidae.[5][6]

Distribution

Fossils of Notocetus have been found in:[7]

  • Monte León Formation, Argentina
  • Pietra Leccese Formation, Italy
  • Chilcatay Formation, Peru

References
  1. F. P. Moreno. 1892. Lijeros apuntes sobre dos géneros de cetaceos fósiles de la República Argentina. Revista del Museo de La Plata 3:393-400
  2. Bianucci, Giovanni; Urbina, Mario; Lambert, Olivier (2015). "A new record of Notocetus vanbenedeni (Squalodelphinidae, Odontoceti, Cetacea) from the Early Miocene of Peru". Comptes Rendus Palevol. 14 (1): 5–13. doi:10.1016/j.crpv.2014.08.003.
  3. F. Ameghino. 1894. Enumeration synoptique des especes de mammifères fossiles des formations éocènes de Patagonie. Boletin de la Academia Nacional de Ciencias en Cordoba (Republica Argentina) 13:259-452.
  4. R. Lydekker. 1894. Cetacean skulls from Patagonia. Anales del Museo de la Plata II:1-13.
  5. R. E. Fordyce. 1994. Waipatia maerewhenua, New Genus and New Species, Waipatiidae, New Family, an archaic late Oligocene dolphin (Cetacea: Odontoceti: Platanistoidea) from New Zealand. Contributions in Marine Mammal Paleontology Honoring Frank C. Whitmore Jr., Proceedings of the San Diego Society of Natural History 29:147-176
  6. Y. Tanaka and R. E. Fordyce. 2014. Fossil dolphin Otekaikea marplesi (Latest Oligocene, New Zealand) expands the morphological and taxonomic diversity of Oligocene cetaceans. PLoS One 9(9):e107972
  7. Notocetus at Fossilworks.org
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