Biology:Pontobasileus

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Short description: Genus of mammals

Pontobasileus
Temporal range: Eocene
Scientific classification edit
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Artiodactyla
Infraorder: Cetacea
Family: Protocetidae
Subfamily: Georgiacetinae
Genus: Pontobasileus
Leidy, 1873
Species:
P. tuberculatus
Binomial name
Pontobasileus tuberculatus
Leidy, 1873

Pontobasileus is an archaeocete whale known from a fragment of a single tooth described by Leidy 1873.[1][2] It can questionably be dated to the Eocene of Alabama.[3]

Leidy assigned the tooth to Archaeoceti, but without neither a stratigraphic nor a geographic locality it is virtually impossible to argue for or against this classification. The tooth was later classified as an Archaeoceti incertae sedis[4] and even a squalodont odontocete (a more recent whale), but can also be assigned to Protocetidae.[5]

References

Notes
Sources

Wikidata ☰ Q24884064 entry