M3#1456

Digital restoration of the snout of Khirtharia inflata (Raoellidae,  Artiodactyla) from the middle Eocene of northwest Himalaya

Maëva J. Orliac, Mohd Waqas, Rajendra Rana and Thierry Smith

In this work, we digitally restore the snout of the raoellide Khirtharia inflata from the Kalakot area (Rajouri District, Jammu & Kashmir, India). Raoellids are small, semiaquatic ungulates closely related to cetaceans. The specimen is fairly complete and preserves left and right maxillaries, left premaxillary, and part of the anterior and jugal dentition. The digital restoration of this quite complete but deformed specimen of Khirtharia inflata is a welcome addition to the data available for raoellids and will be used to further the understanding of the origins of cetaceans.