A new species of Middle Miocene sperm whale of the genus Scaldicetus (Cetacea; Physeteridae) from Shiga-mura, Japan

Abstract A nearly complete skeleton of a fossil sperm whale from the Middle Miocene age Bessho Formation at Shiga-mura, Nagano Prefecture, the most complete fossil physeterid skeleton found in Japan, is here named Scaldicetus shigensis, new species. Its abruptly tapered rostrum, deep supracranial basin, and high occipital crest are typical of physeterids. Large teeth with crenulate enamel on conical crowns, present in both the palate and mandible, are consistent with the genus Scaldicetus du Bus, 1867, a genus originally based on fossils discovered in the Antwerp Basin, Belgium. Scaldicetus shigensis is relatively primitive, having a relatively long, slender rostrum, large zygomatic arches, large tympanic bullae, prominent occipital condyles, low tooth count and a sloping occipital shield that is deeply emarginated laterally by large temporal fossae. The probable mandibular tooth count is 12, only one more than the primitive eutherian mammalian dentition. Despite its abundant primitive characters, Scaldicetus shigensis has very asymmetrical external nares, comparable to the living sperm whale, Physeter catodon, and is in this way more derived than most of the contemporaneous fossil physeterids. At a time when other sperm whales were more highly evolved, Scaldicetus shigensis retained a primitive occipital shield, large tympanic bullae, and low tooth count, as in primitive Oligocene odontocetes such as Agorophiidae. It was a relict form in Middle Miocene time, and provides an indication of a primitive stage of sperm whale evolution heretofore undocumented. Fossils from elsewhere previously referred to as Scaldicetus, largely on the basis of tooth characters, range in age from Early Miocene to Plio-Pleistocene time. Cranial material that would clarify relationships is lacking for most of these, and this time range seems too long for a cetacean genus. Because of this simplistic approach to identifications, Scaldicetus is probably a grade taxon, not a natural biological grouping. However, the tooth morphology of Scaldicetus shigensis is correct for the genus Scaldicetus, so we provisionally assign it to this genus. Redefinition of the genus Scaldicetus and revision of the Physeteridae are beyond the scope of the present study.