Peru: 12-million-year-old dolphin fossil discovered almost intact

A prehistoric dolphin fossil, which has still been minimally studied, dating back 12 million years was found in July in southern Peru. It is a fossilized skeleton of Lomacetus, measuring 3.5 meters long, found almost intact in the Ocucaje desert, approximately 350 kilometers south of the Peruvian capital. Ocucaje is a desert that is very popular among paleontologists.

Peru: 12-million-year-old dolphin fossil discovered

As paleontologist Mario Gamarra told AFP following a press conference held at the headquarters of the Institute of Geology, Mining and Metallurgy: “It is a species of dolphin” that lived “approximately 12 million years ago”. The expert explained that: “We have an almost complete skeleton, which allows us to conduct more studies on the entire animal: how it moved, how it swam, what it ate, or how long it lived”.

It should be noted that just over twenty years ago, fossils of whales, dolphins, sharks, and other species from the Miocene period were found in the Ocucaje desert – a period that began 23 million years ago and ended approximately 5 million years ago.