Simocetus fossil map
Where fossils of Simocetus have been found, shown on the Earth as it looked about 30 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 30 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 | 33.9–27.3 million years ago (Rupelian) |
| Periods | Paleogene |
| Family | Simocetidae |
| Named by | Fordyce 2002 |
| Fossil records | 2 occurrences at 1 locations (PBDB) |
| Found in | United States |
| Rock formations | Alsea |
About Simocetus
Simocetus (from simus, "pug-nosed", and cetus, "whale") is an extinct genus of toothed whale that lived during the Oligocene period, approximately 32 million years ago, making it the oldest named toothed whale, although older unnamed toothed whales exist.
Simocetus is known from a single fossil, a skull, found in marine siltstone deposits of the Alsea Formation on the banks of Oregon's Yaquina River in 1977 by fossil hunter of the region, Douglas Emlong. It was first named by New Zealand paleontologist Ewan Fordyce in 2002 and contains a single species, S. rayi. He found its teeth and jaw different from any other known whale's, and thought it might have been a bottom feeder that fed by suction on marine invertebrates. Features of the basicranium and face suggest that Simocetus may have had comparable echolocation abilities to modern whales.
Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Simocetus (revision 1258222653), 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: Q11703863.
