New Protocetid Whale from the Middle Eocene of Pakistan: Birth on Land, Precocial Development, and Sexual Dimorphism
Figure 13
Principal components plot of trunk and limb skeletal proportions for Maiacetus inuus and a representative sample of 50 extant semiaquatic mammals.
Maiacetus inuus is similar to Rodhocetus species, but lacks elongation of the manus, hind limb, and pes characteristic of the latter. Maiacetus is about equally aquatic (PC-II) to Rodhocetus but less specialized as a hind-limb swimmer (PC-III). It falls closest to the giant otter (Pteronura brasiliensis) among extant mammals. Background and comparative data for this analysis are documented and explained in [4].