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FINEST FOSSIL ODONTOCETE WHALE TOOTH WITH NEEDLE TIP Edisto River, South Carolina, U.S.A. LOWER MIOCENE PERIOD: 23 million years ago This is a PERFECT fossil tooth from an unidentified extinct Odontocete (toothed whale) from the Miocene Period. Science readily admits it is difficult to accurately attribute isolated teeth such as these to a specific species. A specimen such as this is perfect to display alongside a shark tooth collection as this creature would have shared the same waters and time period as many of the dangerous sharks found off the East Coast of North America during the Miocene / Pliocene including the infamous MEGALODON shark. This exquisite specimen is far nicer than usually seen, complete and with a needle-sharp tip showing zero wear. Faint color banding of gray and black also can be seen on the tip. This fossil whale tooth shows the finest preservation possible and is in a state as if the whale just dropped it from its jaw. Intact with NO REPAIR and NO RESTORATION. Highly recommended for the discriminating fossil collector striving for unique specimens instead of the usual "fossil show" varieties. Whales, dolphins and porpoises make up the group of air-breathing marine mammals called CETACEANS. This group is comprised of three sub-groups - the extinct ARCHAEOCETI, and two living types, the ODONTOCETI (toothed whales) and MYSTICETI (baleen whales). All have a body structure that is highly adapted for their marine environment. These features include paddle-like forelimbs, lack of external hind limbs, large tail for propulsion underwater, dorsally located nostrils for breathing just above the surface of the water, specialized ears for underwater hearing and a streamlined body profile for efficient hydrodynamic locomotion. Odontocetes are more prevalent and varied than Mysticetes. All of the smaller current living whales (porpoises, orcas, narwhals, pilots, etc.) and a few of the larger ones (Sperm Whale) are toothed (Odontocetes). Mysticetes include the largest animal that ever lived on the earth, the Blue Whale. All cetaceans are carnivorous with a main diet consisting of fish, invertebrates and other marine mammals. Many cetacean fossils are found in sediments alongside fossil shark teeth and other marine vertebrates but whale fossils are much less common compared to other marine vertebrate fossils of the same period and region and whale fossils are often found in fragments or show evidence of predation by prehistoric sharks, no doubt, cetaceans most feared enemy in their prehistoric past. COMPLETE PERFECT EXAMPLE WITH NEEDLE-SHARP TIP IN THE FINEST POSSIBLE STATE! 3.5" in length on the outside curve SOLD MV21-021 INCLUDES DISPLAY BOX Actual Item - One Only |
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