Cetacean bones from the Miocene of Virginia

[MarcoSr]

I have boxes of Cetacean bones in my basement.  I wish I had a way to display these upstairs but I just don’t have the room. Here is a group of Cetacean bones ready to go to the basement (I still need to clean the last vertebra on the right in the back.).  You can see lots of vertebrae (the largest in the center is 8.5” wide, 7” deep, by 7.5” high), a partial atlas vertebra (front, center), lots of epiphysis (front), skull pieces (center), an ulna (left, 12.5” long), and a portion of a baleen whale jaw (right, 15.5” long )

 

 

 

 

Marco Sr.

[grandpa]

Those are really nice Marco.  Sounds like time to build a new display table - or room maybe.

[MarcoSr]

59 minutes ago, grandpa said:

Those are really nice Marco.  Sounds like time to build a new display table - or room maybe.

 

Thank you.  I've organized a lot of my macro fossil collection upstairs recently using Riker mount displays.  I really need to go through the boxes in the basement and organize that part of my collection.  A number of these fossil boxes I packed twenty years ago when I moved from Maryland to Virginia.  I don't even remember what is in most of them anymore.

 

Marco Sr.

[Shellseeker]

Marco,

Very nice !!  Marine mammals are one of my favorites.. I think because you have so many fossils, it is worth asking a question about Verts and (I guess)  also epiphysis .

Is there a way you differentiate Whale from dolphin/porpoise? This recently found little vert is about 3 inches across and I assume dolphin based on size. 

[MarcoSr]

1 hour ago, Shellseeker said:

Marco,

Very nice !!  Marine mammals are one of my favorites.. I think because you have so many fossils, it is worth asking a question about Verts and (I guess)  also epiphysis .

Is there a way you differentiate Whale from dolphin/porpoise? This recently found little vert is about 3 inches across and I assume dolphin based on size. 

 

 

Unfortunately, except for Cetacean atlas and axis vertebrae, Cetacean vertebrae are not really diagnostic.  So, as far as I know, you can't get to a family/genus/species for your vertebra from its features.  Size is also tricky.  There can be some small whales especially baby ones and some large dolphins.  I can say that I consider the back three vertebrae in my pictures, because of their very large size, to be from whales.  Your vertebra is a very tricky in-between size for me.  I would lean toward whale but I can't give a definite answer to your question.

 

Marco Sr.