HOME | DD

Description
Perucetus is an extinct species of cetaceans belonging to the Basilosauridae family.
The first fossils, essentially comprising vertebrae, had been discovered in the early 2010s but it would be another decade until Perucetus was properly described.
Because its skull was not found yet, the bioecology regarding Perucetus remains unknown for the time being, though it had been speculated that it fed on sea vegetation, unless the creature preferred preying on mollusks and slow-moving prey.
What is known from this creature, however, is the fact it lived in Peru 39 million years ago and that its proportions are simply huge.
With size estimates ranging anywhere between 17 and 20 meters long, because its vertebrae were twice as voluminous as those of a blue whale, studies suggest that Perucetus may have weighed at the very least 80 tons, with the maximum estimation being a whopping 340 tons. If such estimates are accurate, then Perucetus may very well be the heaviest animal that ever existed, outweighing some of the largest sauropods and the blue whale.

Description
Perucetus is an extinct species of cetaceans belonging to the Basilosauridae family.
The first fossils, essentially comprising vertebrae, had been discovered in the early 2010s but it would be another decade until Perucetus was properly described.
Because its skull was not found yet, the bioecology regarding Perucetus remains unknown for the time being, though it had been speculated that it fed on sea vegetation, unless the creature preferred preying on mollusks and slow-moving prey.
What is known from this creature, however, is the fact it lived in Peru 39 million years ago and that its proportions are simply huge.
With size estimates ranging anywhere between 17 and 20 meters long, because its vertebrae were twice as voluminous as those of a blue whale, studies suggest that Perucetus may have weighed at the very least 80 tons, with the maximum estimation being a whopping 340 tons. If such estimates are accurate, then Perucetus may very well be the heaviest animal that ever existed, outweighing some of the largest sauropods and the blue whale.