As my studies into the astonishing diversity of Peruvian wildlife continue in preparation for my eventual visit to that nation with Gunnar Engblom and Kolibri Expeditions, I not-long-ago ran across a little natural history tidbit on the web that left me very much amazed. It seems that archeologists recently discovered the remains of a now extinct species of toothed whale in the Pisco-Ica Desert along the southern coast of Peru – and what a whale of a whale it was. Estimated at over forty feet in length and wielding teeth around fourteen inches long, the creature, designated Leviathan melvillei, is thought to have lived approximately twelve million years ago and to have preyed upon other whales. I’m not certain what the Spanish form of the name “Ishmael” is, but feel free to call me it indeed.
