''Eudelphis'' is an extinct genus of
sperm whale
The sperm whale or cachalot (''Physeter macrocephalus'') is the largest of the toothed whales and the largest toothed predator. It is the only living member of the Genus (biology), genus ''Physeter'' and one of three extant species in the s ...
belonging to
Physeteroidea
Physeteroidea is a superfamily (taxonomy), superfamily that includes three extant taxon, extant species of whales: the sperm whale, in the genus ''Physeter'', and the pygmy sperm whale and dwarf sperm whale, in the genus ''Kogia''. In the past, t ...
that lived in the ancient
North Sea
The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Denmark, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. A sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Se ...
basin about 16-11 million years ago, during the middle Miocene (Langhian).
Distribution
The holotype of ''Eudelphis'' is known from the Langhian-age
Berchem Formation
Berchem () is a southern district of the municipality and city of Antwerp in the Flemish Region of Belgium. Berchem is located along the old ''Grote Steenweg'' (Dutch for 'Big Paved Road') that has connected Brussels to Antwerp for several centur ...
of the vicinity of Antwerp, Belgium.
Taxonomy
''Eudelphis'' was once considered a synonym of the genus ''
Scaldicetus
''Scaldicetus'' is an extinct genus of highly predatory macroraptorial sperm whale. Although widely used for a number of extinct physeterids with primitive dental morphology consisting of enameled teeth, ''Scaldicetus'' as generally recognized ...
'', but that genus is now considered of doubtful validity due to the questionably diagnostic value of the holotype tooth, and Lambert (2008) revalidated ''Eudelphis'', classifying it as a basal physeteroid.
[O. Lambert. 2008. Sperm whales from the Miocene of the North Sea: a re-appraisal. Bulletin del'Institut Royal des Sciences Naturelles de Belgique, Sciences de la Terre 78:277-316]
See also
*''
Aulophyseter
''Aulophyseter'' is an extinct genus of sperm whales from the Miocene formations of the west and east coasts of North America.
''Aulophyseter'' reached a length of approximately with an estimated body weight of .R. Nieuwenhuys (1998) ''The cent ...
''
*''
Orycterocetus
''Orycteocetus'' is an extinct genus of sperm whale from the Miocene of the northern Atlantic Ocean.
Classification
''Orycterocetus'' is a member of Physeteroidea closely related to crown-group sperm whales. The type species, ''O. quadratidens'' ...
''
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q55611124
Prehistoric toothed whales
Miocene mammals of Europe
Miocene cetaceans
Monotypic prehistoric cetacean genera
Physeteroidea