Mammal
Basilosaurus
Basilosaurus isis was an early whale with an extraordinarily long body and very small hind limbs.
Basilosaurus isis was an early whale with an extraordinarily long body and very small hind limbs. Despite its name, it was a mammal rather than a reptile.
Three stages. One companion.
Game artwork
AI-generated, stylized game illustrations. These designs and growth stages are imaginative, not scientific reconstructions.
Basilosaurus at a glance
- Diet
- Carnivore
- Its teeth and feeding structures are interpreted as adapted to taking animal prey.
- When it lived
- Late Eocene
- Group
- Basilosauridae
- Basilosaurids
Beyond the game
The real Basilosaurus
Basilosaurus isis was an early whale with an extraordinarily long body and very small hind limbs. Despite its name, it was a mammal rather than a reptile.
Its skeleton belonged to a fully aquatic whale. The tiny hind limbs were remnants of a very different mammalian ancestry, rather than legs capable of supporting it on land.
Fossil discoveries
Selected fossil records · present-day map
Map references
Map: Natural Earth, public domain. Fossil records: Paleobiology Database and linked collections and publications.Sources & text credits
Explore the references behind this profile.
Original English Dinosgacha educational summaries informed by the linked scientific and museum references; source publications retain their own rights.