Balaena fossil map
Where fossils of Balaena have been found, shown on the Earth as it looked about 0 million years ago and on today’s map.
Dots are fossil collections recorded in the Paleobiology Database. The “then” view moves today’s fossil sites back to their positions 0 million years ago (the time slice nearest the median age of the fossils) using the Merdith et al. (2021) plate model; positions are approximate. Open on the timeline map →
| Group | Early mammals |
|---|---|
| Lived | 20.45 million years ago to the present (Burdigalian to Holocene) |
| Periods | Neogene, Quaternary |
| Family | Balaenidae |
| Named by | Linnaeus 1758 |
| Fossil records | 876 occurrences at 388 locations (PBDB) |
| Found in | Canada, Norway, Denmark, United States, Greenland, Italy, Sweden, United Kingdom, Germany, Netherlands … |
| Rock formations | txn:42978, Yorktown, Black Rock Sandstone, Na-arai, Port Orford, Sables des Landes |
About Balaena
Balaena is a genus of cetacean (whale) in the family Balaenidae. Balaena is considered a monotypic genus, as it has only a single extant species, the bowhead whale (B. mysticetus). It was named in 1758 by Linnaeus, who at the time considered all of the right whales (and the bowhead) as a single species. Historically, both the family Balaenidae and genus Balaena were known by the common name, "right whales", however Balaena are now known as bowhead whales.
Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Balaena (revision 1354641817), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0; introduction excerpted verbatim, formatting removed. Ages, family, authority and fossil records: Paleobiology Database, accessed 23 October 2026. Ages are those of the rock layers the fossils were found in. Wikidata: Q4820658.
