WETENSCHAP AUTEUR KLAAS POST JENS-KJELD JENSEN - NOVEMBER 2013 NOVEMBER

and – for the record – of all

Choneziphius van de zeebodem nabij de Faroer Eilanden van de zeebodem nabij de Faroer . The object which boarded the Anita represents which boarded the The object . from the seabed near the Faroe Islands is noted the Faroe the seabed near from The rostrum weights 3925 grams and shows the polishedThe rostrum weights 3925 grams and shows Dorsally the rostrum measures 445 mm (from apex to the planirostris Islands, Faroe the of large a of fossil first the only not of the fossilbut also marks the northernmost occurrence genus known fossil beaked whales. home in Sumba, The rostrum is retained in Bjarni Jacobsen’s Faroe Islands. DESCRIPTION of beaked whaleand weathered surface which is seen in most fossils from ocean floors. At position damaged border of the premaxillary sac fossa). - - Choneziphius planirostris Choneziphius Choneziphius planirostris

Faroe Islands (c. 62˚05’N-09˚28’W). One day fishermanFaroe Islands (c. 62˚05’N-09˚28’W). One day observedBjarni Jacobsen from Sumba, Faroe Islands, n 2007 the vessel Anita was fishing with bottom gillnets n 2007 the vessel Mykines -in about 400 metre deep water north-west of

Dorsaal en lateraal aanzicht van het rostrum van de Faroer Eilanden. het rostrumDorsaal de Faroer aanzicht van van en lateraal Fig. 1 Dorsal and lateral view of the rostrum Islands. 1 Dorsal view of the Faroe and lateral Fig. skull - of the 10-8 Ma old extinct beaked whale ject was identified as a rostrum - the anterior-most part of the ject was identified as a rostrum - the anterior-most presumed the object could be a fragment of a bone of a marine Soon the enigmatic ob mammal and contacted the first author. able to identify the strange object. The second author of the able to identify the strange object. in 2013, whopresent article contacted Dick Mol from Holland large or reptiles are unknown to the Faroe Islands – mammals large nobody washanded it over to a local museum. Unfortunately the object aside. He later believed it to be a bone or a head ofthe object aside. He later believed it to be a bone or reptile and – acknowledging that fossils of a large peculiar stone (stones often get entangled in the nets), howe peculiar stone (stones often get entangled in and put ver he realised that it had to be something different a strange object in the nets. At first sight he thought it was At first sight he thought it a a strange object in the nets. wordt gemeld en beschreven. Het rostrum is voor de Faroer Eilanden de eerste melding van een groot uit Eilanden de eerste melding van een groot de Faroer is voor Het rostrum gemeld en beschreven. wordt spitssnuitdolfijn. van een fossiele vondst meest noordelijke toe de tot nu gestorven zoogdier en het markeert Een rostrum van de fossiele spitssnuitdolfijn spitssnuitdolfijn van de fossiele Een rostrum Samenvatting the northernmost occurrence of a fossil beaked whale. beaked of a fossil the northernmost occurrence A rostrum of the fossil beaked whale whale beaked of the fossil A rostrum and it marks Islands, the Faroe of a large mammal from fossil the first represents The rostrum and described. Summary KLAAS POST, NATUURHISTORISCH MUSEUM ROTTERDAM, ROTTERDAM, THE NETHERLANDS ROTTERDAM, MUSEUM ROTTERDAM, NATUURHISTORISCH KLAAS POST, ISLANDS FAROE NÓLSOY, JENS-KJELD JENSEN,

FOSSIL BEAKED WHALES NORTHERNMOST OCCURRENCE OF OCCURRENCE NORTHERNMOST

FROM THE FROM FAROE AND THE ISLANDS, ON DIAMONDS, A MAMMAL FOSSILA MAMMAL DIAMONDS, ON I CRANIUM ] 18 [ WETENSCHAP [ (Bianucci etal. 2013) Lijntekening van deschedelvan Choneziphiusleydii. Fig. 3Linedrawing oftheskull ofChoneziphiusleydii. 20 ] CRANIUM tijdens de jaarlijkse expeditie vantijdens dejaarlijkse hetZeeuwsGenootschap. van Choneziphiusuitde De ZZ10visteenrostrum Westerschelde (TheNetherlands). the Scheldtriver Fig. 2 ofChoneziphiuscaughtonascientific expedition on A rostrum

NOVEMBER 2013 WETENSCHAP - - - - Choneziph : 105-153. NOVEMBER 2013 NOVEMBER

Geodiversitas 35 (1) Fig. 4 Distribution of Choneziphius in the Fig. Atlantic Ocean. Choneziphius in de van Verspreiding Atlantische Oceaan. century to finance extensive marine expeditions th ) showed a for toothed whales unusual, but for) showed a for Miocene toothed whales unusual, Thanks to the finder Bjarni Jacobsen; to Sólfinn Kjærbo and Bianucci G., Mijan I., Lambert O., Post K., O. Mateus (2013) Bizarre The rostrum on the deck of the Anita is not only the first The rostrum on the deck of the The first fossil beaked whale known to science ( The first fossil beaked whale known to science Dick Mol for bringing this important fossil to our attention, and to Mark Broch and Lub Post (GBU) for assistance with textual matters and figures. LITERATURE Atlantic fossil beaked whales (Odontoceti, Ziphiidae) fished from the Ocean floor of the Iberian Peninsula. The lack of fossil species (at the time) was the reason thatThe lack of fossil species (at the time) was the attention.this peculiar observation received limited scientific of dozens ofNowadays the above mentioned descriptions somewhereMiocene beaked whales underline that already its deep div around the Middle Miocene the family developed The very early specialisation of ing and suction feeding habit. on cephalopodsmembers of this family to deep water feeding its ancientis probably the reason why this family is – despite extant species. history – still successful and contains so many DIAMONDS AND BEAKED WHALE FOSSILS fossil mammal of the Faroe Islands, and marks not only large the northernmost occurrence of a beaked whale, but also exposure of phos represents a clear proof of a (possibly large) phate nodules on the seafloor at the fishing site. Similar expo African government in the beginning sures caused the South of the 20 to measure the viability of harvesting these ‘wet resources’. More recently these deep ocean floor exposures worry the 21st-century Namibian fishing industry because the Namibian state is starting to harvest the nodules. But whether this is for fossils or diamonds – which seems to coexist in Namibia with fossil beaked whales – remains to be seen! ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS but even more amazing is the fact that most of these fossilsbut even more amazing is the fact that most outcropsare found on deep ocean floors between abundant skulls mayof phosphate nodules. In fact the rostra or partial The fossil nodules by themselves. be considered as very large Anita is a typical example of this phenomenon, which of the and of anis proof of enormous past upwelling of the oceans incredibly diversified beaked whale explosion! ius maxilla.the extant beaked whales characteristic, edentulous - - - - is one Chon ). ., 2013 described a new, and ., 2013 described a new, Choneziphius leydii characteristic maxillary excres – typical prominent ridge of et al Choneziphius planirostris century from the crags in Suffolk, century from the crags in Suffolk, th Choneziphius Choneziphius belongs) within the family Ziphiiidae. In the middlebelongs) within the family Ziphiiidae. In the

., 2013). The variety of fossil beaked whale morpholo ., 2013).

Although rarely observed, the deep diving squid eating The fossil beaked whale gies is changing our knowledge of these mysterious , Zealand, Peru, Portugal, Spain and South Africa (see Bianucci Zealand, Peru, Portugal, Spain and South et al known, but during the last decade a wealth of fossil species have been described, originating from Belgium, Japan, New species-rich family of extant cetaceans (with 22 living spe cies). Until a few decades ago only a few fossil species were beaked whales are after the dolphins (Delphinidae) the most FLOORS BEAKED WHALE FOSSIL ON OCEANWHALE FOSSIL BEAKED floor near Spain and Portugal ( OCCURRENCE OF WORLDWIDE USA. Just recently Bianucci species of the same genus from the deep ocean much larger, been reported in the 19 UK, and from phosphate beds from the East Coast of the nor have associated post crania (vertebrae, limp bones). From outside Holland and Belgium a few rostra of the species have Antwerp area (Belgium), the Scheldt river (The Netherlands) complete skull has never been found, A and the North Sea. beaked whale ever described, to date only c. 40 fossil rostra and somewhat more complete skulls have been found in the scientific name and position. Despite being the first fossil rostrum of a beaked whale. He realised the differences with rostrum of a beaked whale. He realised the differences the extant (and rarely sighted) beaked whales and coined its identified and described in 1823 a heavy mineralised toothlessidentified and described in 1823 a heavy mineralised as aAntwerp in Belgium rostrum from the Scheldt river near of the first described fossil whales. Baron de Cuvier himselfof the first described fossil whales. Baron de CHONEZIPHIUS the base of the rostrum the suture of the palatine-maxilla isthe base of the rostrum the suture of the palatine-maxilla clearly visible. severely eroded. Laterally the rostrum shows over most of itsseverely eroded. Laterally the rostrum shows Just belowlength the suture of the vestigial alveolar groove. fossae. The for The fossae. visible andcences near the base of the rostrum are just barely – for the genus premaxillary sacthe fused premaxillae, which separates both eziphius evolves theof, and just posterior to, the base of the rostrum be clearly noted from the apex to the base of the rostrum. This the rostrum. be clearly noted from the apex to the base of which condition unites the subfamily Ziphiinae (to at position B). First and foremost the suture of the fusedat position B). First and foremost the suture channel) canpremaxillae (forming and covering a mesorostral A (see figure 1) it has a width of 74 mm which gradually A the rostrumincreases to 126 mm (shortly after the base of CRANIUM ] 20 [