Four-legged whale fossil hitherto unknown found in Egypt

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CAIRO, Aug. 25 – Scientists said Wednesday they had discovered in Egypt the fossil of an unknown 43-million-year-old amphibious four-legged amphibious whale in Egypt that helps track whales’ transition from land to sea .

The newly discovered whale belongs to the Protocetidae, a group of extinct whales that falls in the middle of this transition, according to a team of researchers led by Egypt.

Its fossil was unearthed from Middle Eocene rocks in the Fayum Depression in the western desert of Egypt, an area covered by the sea that has provided a wealth of discoveries showing the evolution of whales. , before being studied at the Center for Vertebrate Paleontology at Mansoura University (MUVP).

The new whale, called Phiomicetus anubis, had an estimated body length of about three meters (10 feet) and a body mass of about 1,300 pounds and was probably one of the main predators, the researchers said. Its partial skeleton revealed it to be the most primitive proto-whale known in Africa.

A map detailing the Fayum Depression in Egypt, where paleontologists found the fossil whale.
A map detailing the Fayum Depression in Egypt, where paleontologists found the fossil whale.
Gohar AS et al

“Phiomicetus anubis is a key new species of whale and a critical discovery for Egyptian and African paleontology,” said Abdullah Gohar of MUVP, lead author of an article on the discovery published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B .

The name of the genus of the whale honors the depression of Fayum and the name of the species refers to Anubis, the ancient Egyptian god with no canine associated with mummification and beyond.

Despite recent fossil discoveries, the overall picture of the early evolution of whales in Africa has been largely a mystery, the researchers said. Work in the region had the potential to reveal new details about the evolutionary transition from amphibian whales to fully aquatic ones.

Left-wing Egyptian paleontologists Mohamed Sameh Antar, Abdullah Gohar and Hesham Sallam sit around the fossils of the new whale, Phiomicetus anubis, at the paleontology center of vertebrates at Mansoura University.
Left-wing Egyptian paleontologists Mohamed Sameh Antar, Abdullah Gohar and Hesham Sallam sit around the fossils of the new whale, Phiomicetus anubis, at the paleontology center of vertebrates at Mansoura University.
Abdullah Gohar

With rocks covering about 12 million years, the discoveries of the Fayum Depression “range from crocodile-like semi-aquatic whales to completely aquatic giant whales,” said Mohamed Sameh of the Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency. , co-author.

Hesham Sellam, founder of the MUVP and another co-author, said the new whale has raised questions about ancient ecosystems and has investigated issues such as the origin and coexistence of ancient whales in Egypt.

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