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The holotype partial skull of Agorophius pygmaeus (the monotypic form for
both the genus Agorophius and the Family Agorophiidae) has been missing
for approximately 140 years. Since the discovery of Agorophius pygmaeus,
many additional taxa and specimens have been placed in the Family
Agorophiidae, only to be reclassified and removed later. This has created
confusion as to what is and what is not an agorophiid and a lack of
clarity as to what characteristics delimit the Agorophiidae. A newly
discovered skull of an agorophiid recently collected from an underwater
cliff face of the Ashley River, South Carolina, USA, is assigned to
Agorophius pygmaeus. It derives from the base of the Ashley Formation
(early Oligocene). The new specimen consists of most of the skull and
periotics, which are well preserved and described for the first time in an
agorophiid. The new specimen provides an opportunity to diagnose the
Agorophiidae and place the genus and species within the phylogenetic
context of the early odontocete radiation in the Oligocene, along with
other taxa such as the Ashleycetidae, Mirocetidae, Patriocetidae,
Simocetidae, Waipatiidae, and Xenorophidae. Based on this new
understanding, Agorophiidae are known with certainty only from the early
Oligocene of South Carolina, with other undescribed, potential agorophiid
specimens from the Oligocene of the North Pacific region (Japan, Mexico,
and Washington State).
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