Paleontologists have identified a new whale species from a 25-million-year-old fossil found on an Australian beach.

An extraordinary fossil find along Victoria’s Surf Coast has revealed Janjucetus dullardi, a sharp-toothed, dolphin-sized predator that lived 26 million years ago. With large eyes, slicing teeth, and exceptional ear bone preservation,

Scientists have discovered a “deceptively cute” but fearsome whale that roamed the seas 26 million years ago. Australian scientists at Museums Victoria identified the species from an unusually well-preserved fossil of a skull found on Victoria’s Surf Coast in 2019.