Georgiacetus fossil map
Where fossils of Georgiacetus have been found, shown on the Earth as it looked about 45 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 45 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 | 41.03–37.71 million years ago (Bartonian) |
| Periods | Paleogene |
| Family | Protocetidae |
| Named by | Hulbert et al. 1998 |
| Fossil records | 8 occurrences at 4 locations (PBDB) |
| Found in | United States |
| Rock formations | Blue Bluff, Lisbon, Cook Mountain, Santee Limestone |
About Georgiacetus
Georgiacetus is an extinct genus of ancient whale known from the Eocene period of the United States.
Fossils are known from Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi and protocetid fossils from the right time frame, but not yet confirmed as Georgiacetus, have been found in Texas (Kellogg 1936) and South Carolina (Albright 1996).
Uhen 2008 created a new clade, Pelagiceti, for the common ancestor of Basilosauridae and all of its descendants, including Neoceti, the living cetaceans. He placed Georgiacetus near the base of this clade together with Eocetus and perhaps Babiacetus because of the assumed presence of a fluke and very compressed posterior caudal vertebrae in these genera.
Georgiacetus is an extinct protocetid (early whale) which lived about 40 million years ago and hunted the rich, Suwannee Current powered coastal sea which once covered the Southeastern United States. This was during the earliest Bartonian Stage of the Eocene Epoch (40.5 to 37.2 million years ago).
Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Georgiacetus (revision 1358751948), 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: Q2658298.
