title: A new Miocene baleen whale from the Peruvian desert.
abstract: The Pisco-Ica and Sacaco basins of southern Peru are renowned for their abundance of exceptionally preserved fossil cetaceans, several of which retain traces of soft tissue and occasionally even stomach contents. Previous work has mostly focused on odontocetes, with baleen whales currently being restricted to just three described taxa. Here, we report a new Late Miocene rorqual (family Balaenopteridae),Incakujira anillodefuegogen. et sp. nov., based on two exceptionally preserved specimens from the Pisco Formation exposed at Aguada de Lomas, Sacaco Basin, southern Peru.Incakujiraoverall closely resembles modern balaenopterids, but stands out for its unusually gracile ascending process of the maxilla, as well as a markedly twisted postglenoid process of the squamosal. The latter likely impeded lateral (omega) rotation of the mandible, in stark contrast with the highly flexible craniomandibular joint of extant lunge-feeding rorquals. Overall,Incakujiraexpands the still meagre Miocene record of balaenopterids and reveals a previously underappreciated degree of complexity in the evolution of their iconic lunge-feeding strategy.
authors.affiliation: Department of Geology and Palaeontology, National Museum of Nature and Science, Tsukuba, Japan; School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, 25 Rainforest Walk, Clayton, Victoria 3800, Australia; Geosciences, Museum Victoria, Melbourne, Australia; Directorate of Earth and History of Life, Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences, Brussels, Belgium.
authors.forename: Felix G
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-1029-4001
authors.initials: FG
authors.lastname: Marx
authors.affiliation: Department of Geology and Palaeontology, National Museum of Nature and Science, Tsukuba, Japan; Graduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Japan.
authors.forename: Naoki
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Kohno
keywords: Balaenopteridae; Mysticeti; Pisco Formation; baleen whale; lunge feeding; rorqual