Artiodactyla

In the broad phylogenetic usage, a clade including Cetacea together with the traditional even-toed ungulates. Whale ancestry is therefore artiodactyl ancestry, despite the loss of the adult terrestrial hoofed body plan.

A pig is a member of the suid mammal group, with domestic pigs derived from wild-boar ancestry. Feeding ecology, domestication and breeding can alter traits within a species, so a domestic phenotype should not automatically stand for its ancestral condition.

A goat is a ruminant mammal of the genus Capra; domestic goats descend from wild relatives. Their feeding and digestive physiology connect plant selection with microbial processing in the foregut.

A sheep is a ruminant mammal of the genus Ovis; domestic sheep have been selected for traits including fleece, growth and reproduction. Observed breed differences reflect both inherited variation and the conditions in which animals develop.

Domestic bovines whose archaeological history must be distinguished from that of wild aurochs.

A deer of the genus Muntiacus, some populations of which occur outside their native range through human introductions.

Cervus nippon, introduced into parts of Britain and Ireland through human management.

The deer lineage including Dama dama, with a long history of human translocation.

Cervus elaphus, whose modern populations can include both older regional lineages and recent translocations.

The wild form of Sus scrofa; interpretation of archaeological material must distinguish wild, domestic and managed animals.

The extinct wild cattle species Bos primigenius. Its regional disappearance must be distinguished from the history of domestic cattle.

The extinct deer Megaloceros giganteus, also called the Irish elk despite its wider geographical distribution. ^[ref]

Ruminantia is the mammalian group of ruminants, including goats, sheep and deer. Regurgitation and rechewing interact with microbial foregut fermentation. Digestive function therefore depends on both the host’s anatomy and associated microorganisms.

A member of Ruminantia, characterized by a specialized foregut fermentation system and rumination. It is not a general name for every foregut-fermenting herbivore.

A hippopotamus is a large, semiaquatic artiodactyl mammal. Living hippopotamuses form the closest living sister lineage of Cetacea; a living hippopotamus is not a whale ancestor. Comparing present-day relatives helps reconstruct shared ancestry without treating either as unchanged.

The lineage of whales, dolphins and porpoises. Its Eocene fossils document a sequence from terrestrial or amphibious relatives to fully aquatic forms; living members comprise Odontoceti and Mysticeti.

A dolphin is a member of several groups of toothed cetaceans. The common name includes oceanic and river-associated forms. Sound production and sensing are important in many species, but the name does not imply identical sensory or social behavior throughout the grouping.

A bottlenose dolphin is a toothed cetacean of the genus Tursiops. These dolphins are studied for flexible foraging and social behavior as well as underwater acoustic sensing. Different populations can use different learned behaviors.

A soft-tissue propulsive structure of the tail. It should not be drawn as a directly preserved fossil feature when only skeletal evidence is available.

A member of a late Eocene whale radiation with a fully aquatic body plan and strongly reduced hind limbs.

A late Eocene whale retaining small hind limbs incapable of supporting terrestrial walking. ^[ref]

A member of an Eocene grade of whales documenting increasing aquatic specialization. Named fossil grades need not be monophyletic under every analysis.

An Eocene whale whose ankle anatomy supplies evidence of artiodactyl relationships. A reconstructed tail fluke is not a directly preserved observation in its known skeletons. ^[ref]

An Eocene whale with a combination of robust limbs and aquatic locomotor specializations.

Pakicetidae is an extinct group of early cetaceans with substantial terrestrial locomotor capabilities. Their combination of limb and ear characters helps trace the transition between land-associated ancestors and later aquatic cetaceans. A fossil can establish affinity without possessing the full modern body form.

An early whale of the family Pakicetidae, with diagnostic ear anatomy but a largely terrestrial skeleton. ^[ref]

The whale lineage containing living baleen-bearing species and their extinct relatives, including toothed forms. Adult toothlessness is a derived feature of the living radiation.

Keratinous plates used in filtering food in living mysticetes. Its presence in a fossil may be inferred from associated anatomy but must not be confused with direct preservation of the plates. ^[ref]

The living toothed-whale lineage, including dolphins and porpoises. Specialized sound production and echolocation are important components of its sensory biology.