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Thalassocetus antwerpiensis

Mammalia - Cetacea - Physeteridae

Taxonomy
Thalassocetus antwerpiensis was named by Abel (1905) [lectotype IRNSB M.525]. Its type specimen is MRHNB 3428 and is a 3D body fossil.

It was considered a nomen dubium by Fordyce and de Muizon (2001).

Synonymy list
YearName and author
1905Thalassocetus antwerpiensis Abel p. 70
2002Thalassocetus antwerpiensis Kazár p. 154
2008Thalassocetus antwerpiensis Lambert p. 303
2015Thalassocetus antwerpiensis Velez-Juarbe et al. p. 15 figs. Fig. 10
2021Thalassocetus antwerpiensis Alfsen et al. p. 809

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RankNameAuthor
kingdomAnimalia()
Bilateria
EubilateriaAx 1987
Deuterostomia
phylumChordataHaeckel 1874
subphylumVertebrata
superclassGnathostomata
Osteichthyes()
subclassSarcopterygii()
subclassDipnotetrapodomorpha(Nelson 2006)
subclassTetrapodomorpha()
Tetrapoda
Reptiliomorpha
Anthracosauria
subclassAmphibiosauriaKuhn 1967
Cotylosauria()
Amniota
subclassSynapsida
Therapsida()
infraorderCynodontia()
Mammaliamorpha
Mammaliaformes
classMammalia
Theriamorpha(Rowe 1993)
RankNameAuthor
Theriiformes()
Trechnotheria
Cladotheria
Zatheria
subclassTribosphenida()
subclassTheria
Eutheria()
Placentalia
Boreoeutheria
Laurasiatheria
Scrotifera
Euungulata
Artiodactylamorpha
Artiodactyla()
Whippomorpha
orderCetacea
Pelagiceti
Neoceti
suborderOdontoceti
superfamilyPhyseteroidea
familyPhyseteridae
genusThalassocetus
speciesantwerpiensis

If no rank is listed, the taxon is considered an unranked clade in modern classifications. Ranks may be repeated or presented in the wrong order because authors working on different parts of the classification may disagree about how to rank taxa.

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Diagnosis
ReferenceDiagnosis
O. Lambert 2008Thalassocetus an twerp iens is is a small physeteroid species with a skull size close to Kogia breviceps. It differs from all the other kogiids in the nodular postglenoid process of the squamosal, and the thin supraorbital area of the skull, from Kogia and Scaphokogia in the U-shaped short antorbital notch, from Aprixokogia, Kogia, and Praekogia in the right antorbital notch being distinctly outside the supracranial basin and in larger dorsal infraorbital foramina, from Aprixokogia and Praekogia in the temporal fossa being anteroposteriorly compressed, and from Kogia and Praekogia in the absence of a wide notch in the squamosal for the enlarged posterior process of the tympanic bulla.
A. Alfsen et al. 2021This small size physeterid (postorbital width lower than 300 mm in the juvenile to subadult lectotype, within the range of adults of Kogia spp.) can be distinguished from all other physeteroids (stem physeteroids, physeterids, and kogiids) by the following unique combination of cranial morphological features: antorbital notch being located outside the proportionally narrow supracranial basin (differing from most kogiids); at least one right dorsal infraorbital foramen being located inside the supracranial basin; retention of the left nasal along the left posterolateral wall of the supracranial basin (differing from kogiids for which the postnarial region is known); left nasal being posteriorly pointed, with the apex nearly reaching the nuchal crest and being close to the sagittal plane of the cranium (differing, among others, from Orycterocetus crocodili- nus Cope, 1868); absence of a sagittal facial crest in the supracranial basin (differing from most kogiids); abrupt dorsal elevation of the posterior part of the maxilla towards the nuchal crest; short, trian- gular zygomatic process of the squamosal (ratio between distance from anterior tip of zygomatic process to exoccipital and postorbital width lower than 0.25); nodular, somewhat anteroposteriorly thick- ened postglenoid process of the squamosal; anteroposteriorly short posttympanic process of the squamosal, lacking a broad notch for the posterior process of the tympanic (differing from most kogiids); and anterodorsal portion of the surface of the occipital shield being dorsoventrally concave and transversely convex.