A new fossil kentriodontid dolphin (Cetacea; Kentriodontidae) from the Middle Miocene Takinoue Formation, Hokkaido, Japan |
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| Authors: | Hiroto Ichishima |
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| Institution: | Department of Geology, University of Otago, PO Box 56, Dunedin, New Zealand |
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| Abstract: | Abstract Kentriodon hobetsu , a new species, is described from a partial skull from the Middle Miocene Takinoue Formation, in Hokkaido, Japan. The holotype skull includes the base of the rostrum and a fairly well preserved braincase. The new species is distinguished clearly from previously described species of Kentriodon Kellogg, 1927, by the shape of the anterior margin of the pterygoid sinus fossa, the large premaxilla, rounded facial margin, and lesser development of rugosities and processes. This new record of Kentriodon , the first named kentriodontid dolphin from the western North Pacific, extends the geographic range of the genus significantly. |
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| Keywords: | circum-Pacific distribution fossil dolphin Hokkaido Japan Kentriodontidae western North Pacific |
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