''Supayacetus'' is an extinct

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial n ...

basilosaurid Basilosauridae is a family of extinct cetaceans. They lived during the middle to the early late Eocene and are known from all continents, including Antarctica. They were probably the first fully aquatic cetaceans.Buono M, Fordyce R.E., Marx F. ...

cetacean from

Middle Eocene The Eocene ( ) Epoch is a geological epoch that lasted from about 56 to 33.9 million years ago (mya). It is the second epoch of the Paleogene Period in the modern Cenozoic Era. The name ''Eocene'' comes from the Ancient Greek (''ēṓs'', "d ...

(

Bartonian The Bartonian is, in the ICS's geologic time scale, a stage or age in the middle Eocene Epoch or Series. The Bartonian Age spans the time between . It is preceded by the Lutetian and is followed by the Priabonian Age. Stratigraphic defin ...

stage) deposits of southern

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

Etymology

The genus is named after

Supay In the Quechua, Aymara, and Inca mythologies, Supay was both the god of death and ruler of the ''Ukhu Pacha'', the Incan underworld, as well as a race of demons. Supay is associated with miners' rituals. With the Spanish colonization of the Ame ...

, the Incan god of death, and ''ketos'' Greek for whale.

Description

''Supayacetus'' is known from the

holotype A holotype is a single physical example (or illustration) of an organism, known to have been used when the species (or lower-ranked taxon) was formally described. It is either the single such physical example (or illustration) or one of seve ...

MUSM 1465, a partial

skeleton A skeleton is the structural frame that supports the body of an animal. There are several types of skeletons, including the exoskeleton, which is the stable outer shell of an organism, the endoskeleton, which forms the support structure inside ...

. As ''

Ocucajea ''Ocucajea'' is an extinct genus of basilosaurid cetacean from Middle Eocene (Bartonian stage) deposits of southern Peru. ''Ocucajea'' is known from the holotype MUSM 1442, a partial skeleton. It was collected in the Archaeocete Valley sit ...

'', it was collected in the Archaeocete Valley site, from the

Paracas Formation Paracas or ''variation'', may refer to: Places * Paracas Peninsula, located in the Ica Region of Peru * Paracas Bay, located in the Pisco Province of the Ica Region in Peru * Paracas (municipality), the capital city of the Paracas District * Parac ...

of the

Pisco Basin Pisco Basin ( es, Cuenca de Pisco) is a sedimentary basin extending over in southwestern Peru.Solís Mundaca, 2018, p.1 The basin has a thick sedimentary fill, which is about half the thickness of more northern foreland basins in Peru. The old ...

about .''Supayacetus''
at

Fossilworks Fossilworks is a portal which provides query, download, and analysis tools to facilitate access to the Paleobiology Database, a large relational database assembled by hundreds of paleontologists from around the world. History Fossilworks was cre ...

.org It was named by and the

type species In zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the species that contains the biological type specimen( ...

''S. muizoni'' honours palaeontologist

Christian de Muizon Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρισ ...

who has contributed considerably to Peruvian palaeontology. Distinguishing characters of ''Supayacetus'' include: a T-shaped

manubrium The sternum or breastbone is a long flat bone located in the central part of the chest. It connects to the ribs via cartilage and forms the front of the rib cage, thus helping to protect the heart, lungs, and major blood vessels from injury. Sh ...

with a rod-shaped process; cheek teeth with accessory denticles; a broad scapula with a large

infraspinous fossa The infraspinous fossa (infraspinatus fossa or infraspinatous fossa) of the scapula is much larger than the supraspinatous fossa; toward its vertebral margin a shallow concavity is seen at its upper part; its center presents a prominent conve ...

; humerus with large and hemispherical head, well-defined proximal tuberosities, a long

deltopectoral crest Deltopectoral may refer to; * Clavipectoral triangle, also known as the deltopectoral triangle * Deltopectoral groove * Deltopectoral lymph nodes One or two deltopectoral lymph nodes (or infraclavicular nodes) are found beside the cephalic vein, b ...

, and a broad shaft. Compared to other

basilosaurids Basilosauridae is a family of extinct cetaceans. They lived during the middle to the early late Eocene and are known from all continents, including Antarctica. They were probably the first fully aquatic cetaceans.Buono M, Fordyce R.E., Marx F. ...

, ''Supayacetus'' is larger than ''

Protocetus ''Protocetus atavus'' ("first whale") is an extinct species of primitive cetacean from Egypt. It lived during the middle Eocene period 45 million years ago. The first discovered protocetid, ''Protocetus atavus'' was described by based on a cran ...

'' but its skull and vertebrae are smaller than in other

References

Bibliography

* Basilosauridae Prehistoric cetacean genera Eocene mammals of South America Divisaderan Paleogene Peru Fossils of Peru Fossil taxa described in 2011 {{paleo-whale-stub