Titanocetus

Name: Titanocetus ‭(‬Titano whale‭ ‬-‭ ‬named after Monte Titano‭)‬.
Phonetic: Ty-tan-o-see-tus.
Named By: M.‭ ‬Bisconti‭ ‬-‭ ‬2006.
Synonyms: Aulocetus sammarinensis.
Classification: Chordata,‭ ‬Mammalia,‭ ‬Cetacea,‭ ‬Mysticeti,‭ ‬Thalassotherii,‭ ‬Cetotheriidae.
Species: T.‭ ‬sammarinensis‭ (‬type‭)‬.
Diet: Carnivore‭ ‬-‭ ‬Filter feeder.
Size: Skull about‭ ‬1‭ ‬meter long,‭ ‬total body length estimated to be about‭ ‬6‭ ‬meters long.
Known locations: San Marino.
Time period: Serravalian of the Miocene.
Fossil representation: Skull.




       Titanocetus is a genus of baleen whale that lived in waters around Europe during the Miocene.‭ ‬As a member of the Cetotheriidae whales,‭ ‬Titanocetus would have been related to genera such as Cetotherium.‭ ‬There is a popular misconception that the name Titanocetus means‭ ‘‬Titan whale‭’ ‬in reference to a large size,‭ ‬and indeed this is often the case‭ (‬i.e.‭ ‬Titanosaurus,‭ ‬Titanoceratops,‭ ‬Titanoboa,‭ ‬etc‭)‬.‭ ‬The titan part of Titanocetus however is actually a reference to Monte Titano‭ (‬Mount Titan‭)‬,‭ ‬which is a mountain peak in San Marino near where the holotype fossils of Titanocetus were first found.
       Predatory threats to Titanocetus likely included predatory toothed whales as well as colossal mega-toothed sharks such as the infamous C.‭ ‬megalodon.

Further reading
-‭ ‬Balenottera miocenica della Repubblica di San Marino.‭ ‬-‭ ‬Atti della Reale Accademia dei Lincei‭ ‬5:233-235.‭ ‬-‭ ‬G.‭ ‬Capellini‭ ‬-‭ ‬1900.
-‭ ‬Balenottera miocenica del Monte Titano Repubblica di S.‭ ‬Marino.‭ ‬-‭ ‬Memorie della Regia Accademia delle Scienze all'Istituto di Bologna‭ ‬5:237-260.‭ ‬-‭ ‬G.‭ ‬Capellini‭ ‬-‭ ‬1901.
-‭ ‬Titanocetus,‭ ‬a new baleen whale from the Middle Miocene of northern Italy‭ (‬Mammalia,‭ ‬Cetacea,‭ ‬Mysticeti‭)‬.‭ ‬-‭ ‬Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology,‭ ‬26‭(‬2‭)‬:344-354.‭ ‬-‭ ‬M.‭ ‬Bisconti‭ ‬-‭ ‬2006.



----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Random favourites