Ancient Sharp-Toothed Whale Fossil Unearthed in Australia Sheds Light on Early Marine Predators

Australian scientists have unveiled the fossil of a prehistoric sharp-toothed whale that once prowled the oceans around 26 million years ago. The discovery, made in Surf Coast County southwest of Melbourne, reveals a fast and powerful predator about the size of a modern dolphin.

The fossil, consisting of an exceptionally well-preserved skull, was found in 2019 and has now been reconstructed by researchers at Museums Victoria. According to paleontologist Ruairidh Duncan, the creature was “a small whale with large eyes and a mouth full of razor-sharp teeth,” suggesting it was a swift hunter capable of taking down sizeable prey.

Described as a “shark-like version of a baleen whale”, the species belonged to a now-extinct group of early whales—distant, smaller relatives of today’s gentle filter-feeding giants. This marks the fourth known species of its kind ever discovered, underscoring its rarity and scientific importance.

Co-author Erich Fitzgerald, a senior curator and paleontologist at Museums Victoria, noted that the find offers a rare look into whale evolution. “This fossil gives us a glimpse into how ancient whales grew and adapted to life in the ocean,” he said.

The study, published in the Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, deepens understanding of how prehistoric marine mammals evolved into the diverse whale species we know today.

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