Kekenodon

Kekenodon is an extinct kekenodontid early whale from the Late Oligocene (Chattian) of New Zealand. Although at times classified as a basilosaurid, mysticete, or odontocete, recent work suggests that it represents a phylogenetic intermediate form between Basilosauridae and Neoceti.

Kekenodon
Temporal range: Late Oligocene
Teeth of Kekenodon onamata
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Artiodactyla
Infraorder: Cetacea
Family: †Kekenodontidae
Genus: †Kekenodon
Hector, 1881
Species
  • †K. onamata
    Hector, 1881

Classification

Kekenodon was considered a member of the basilosaurid subfamily Dorudontinae in the classic monograph on Archaeoceti by Kellogg (1936).[1]

"Squalodon" gambierensis from Australia is a close relative of Kekenodon.[2]

References
  1. R. Kellogg. 1936. A Review of the Archaeoceti. Carnegie Institution of Washington 482:1-366
  2. R. E. Fordyce. 2006. A southern perspective on Cetacean Evolution and Zoogeoraphy. Evolution and Biogeography of Australasian Vertebrates 755-782
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