Himalayacetus

Himalayacetus is an extinct genus of carnivorous aquatic mammal of the family Ambulocetidae. The holotype was found in Himachal Pradesh, India, (31.0°N 77.0°E / 31.0; 77.0: paleocoordinates 3.5°N 69.7°E / 3.5; 69.7)^[2] in what was the remnants of the ancient Tethys Ocean during the Early Eocene. This makes Himalayacetus the oldest archaeocete known, extending the fossil record of whales some 3.5 million years.^[3]

Himalayacetus Temporal range: Early Eocene, 53.5 Ma PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N ↓
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Artiodactyla
Suborder:	Whippomorpha
Infraorder:	Cetacea
Family:	†Ambulocetidae
Genus:	†Himalayacetus Bajpai & Gingerich, 1998[1]
Species:	†H. subathuensis
Binomial name
†Himalayacetus subathuensis Bajpai & Gingerich, 1998[1]

Himalayacetus lived in the ancient coastline of the ancient Tethys Ocean before the Indian Plate had collided with the Cimmerian coast. Like Gandakasia, Himalayacetus is only known from a single jaw fragment, making comparisons to other ambulocetids difficult.^[4]

Description

Upon its discovery, Himalayacetus was described as a pakicetid because the dentary has a small mandibular canal and a dentition similar to Pakicetus.^[3] Thewissen, Williams & Hussain 2001 assigned Himalaycetus to the ambulocetids.

Etymology

Himalayacetus was named by Bajpai & Gingerich 1998. Its type is Himalayacetus subathuensis after the Himalayas, cetus, "whale", and the Subathu Formation, the type locality.^[5]

Taxonomy

It was considered monophyletic by Uhen (2010). It was assigned to Pakicetidae by Bajpai and Gingerich (1998) and McLeod and Barnes (2008); and to Ambulocetidae by Thewissen et al. (2001) and Uhen (2010).^[6]