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An occurrence of the protocetid whale “Eocetus” wardii in the middle Eocene Piney Point Formation of Virginia

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 July 2015

Robert E. Weems ,
Lucy E. Edwards ,
Jason E. Osborne  and
Aaron A. Alford
Robert E. Weems
Affiliation:
1926A National Center, United States Geological Survey, Reston, Virginia 20192, USA,
Lucy E. Edwards
Affiliation:
1926A National Center, United States Geological Survey, Reston, Virginia 20192, USA,
Jason E. Osborne
Affiliation:
2Paleo Quest, 14243 Murphy Terrace, Gainesville, Virginia 20155, USA,
Aaron A. Alford
Affiliation:
2Paleo Quest, 14243 Murphy Terrace, Gainesville, Virginia 20155, USA,
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Abstract

Two protocetid whale vertebrae, here referred to “Eocetus” wardii, have been recovered from the riverbed of the Pamunkey River in east-central Virginia. Neither bone was found in situ, but both were found with lumps of lithified matrix cemented to their surfaces. Most of this matrix was removed and processed for microfossils. Specimens of dinoflagellates were successfully recovered and this flora clearly demonstrates that both vertebrae came from the middle Eocene Piney Point Formation, which crops out above and below river level in the area where the bones were discovered. These vertebrae are the oldest whale remains reported from Virginia and are as old as any cetacean remains known from the western hemisphere.

Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Paleontology , Volume 85 , Issue 2 , March 2011 , pp. 271 - 278
Copyright
Copyright © The Paleontological Society 

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