Awadelphis hirayamai is a species of extinct oceanic river dolphin discovered in the Senhata Formation of Japan dating around 6 million years ago (mya). The genus name derives from Awa, an ancient name for the Chiba Prefecture where the holotype specimen was collected, and Ancient Greek delphis meaning "dolphin"; the species name honors the discoverer of the holotype, Ren Hirayama. It may have inhabited a subpolar environment. Awadelphis and other river dolphins of the Late Miocene may have been in abundance due to the decline of competing ancient dolphins and porpoises.[1]
Awadelphis Temporal range: Late Miocene 6.3–5.7 Ma
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Mammalia |
Order: | Artiodactyla |
Infraorder: | Cetacea |
Superfamily: | Inioidea |
Family: | incertae sedis |
Genus: | †Awadelphis Murakami, 2016 |
Species: | †A. hirayamai
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Binomial name | |
†Awadelphis hirayamai Murakami, 2016
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References
edit- ^ Murakami, M. (2016). "A New Extinct Inioid (Cetacea, Odontoceti) from the Upper Miocene Senhata Formation, Chiba, Central Japan: The First Record of Inioidea from the North Pacific Ocean". Paleontological Research. 20 (3): 207–225. doi:10.2517/2015PR031. S2CID 132209924.