Cerro Ballena (meaning "Whale Hill") is a fossiliferous locality of the Bahía Inglesa Formation, located in the Atacama Desert along the Pan-American Highway a few kilometers north of the port of Caldera, Chile. It has been dated back to the Late Miocene epoch, during the Neogene period. The locality was first noted in 1965 during military work and fully excavated and studied between 2011 and 2012, and is protected by law since the latter year.
Cerro Ballena is extremely abundant in cetacean fossil skeletons, including over 40 individuals of adult and juvenile ages. This high concentration of cetacean skeletons has made Cerro Ballena well known, now considered a national treasure of Chile. Besides cetaceans the site does also contains fossils of pinnipeds (seals), sailfish, sharks, swordfish, aquatic sloths (not a group as such, but rather the genus Thalassocnus) and invertebrate trace fossils.
The unusual concentration of cetacean remains and other marine vertebrates is explained to have occurred due to poisoning by toxins secreted by algae (events also known as harmful algal bloom). Geological and paleontological evidence indicates that high levels of iron in the sea saturated the growth of algae. Cetaceans and other vertebrates became poisoned, and their carcasses then floated towards the coastline, where they were later transported by strong waves into a flattened berm/shore, and finally becoming buried. This sequence of events happened four times during the deposition of sediments at Cerro Ballena.
CerroBallena (meaning "Whale Hill") is a fossiliferous locality of the Bahía Inglesa Formation, located in the Atacama Desert along the Pan-American...
other marine mammals of the Bahía Inglesa Formation (specifically at CerroBallena), could have been killed by harmful algal blooms. They may have been...
localities of the Bahía Inglesa Formation (Miocene-Pliocene), such as CerroBallena or Los Dedos Paleontological Park. The museum was erected inside the...
in fossil troves, such as the dozens of cetacean skeletons found at CerroBallena. Harmful algal blooms in marine ecosystems have been observed to cause...
Punta Ballena is a small peninsula (punta) and a resort (balneario), as well as an important tourist attraction on the coast of Río de la Plata in the...
contemporaneous fossiliferous formation of the Cocinetas Basin, Colombia CerroBallena, contemporaneous fossil site of the Bahía Inglesa Formation of Chile...
Middle-Late Paleocene South America Colombia CerroBallena Plio–Pleistocene South America Chile Cetaceans Cerro Bandera Formation Miocene South America Argentina...
stratigraphic units in Venezuela Former name of Ituzaingó Formation Former name of Cerro Azul Formation In later research considered part of the Camacho Formation...
Cerro Pelado is a fast-growing population centre, or neighborhood, in the Maldonado Department of southeastern Uruguay. It is one of the northern suburbs...
fossils have been found in the formation: Geology portal Chile portal CerroBallena Elqui-Limarí Batholith Caleta Herradura Formation Navidad Formation...
Issues of debate on the depositional environment of Navidad Formation CerroBallena Coquimbo Formation Lacui Formation Ranquil Formation Santo Domingo Formation...
constructed by the Uruguayan artist Carlos Páez Vilaró. It is located in Punta Ballena, 13 kilometres (8 mi) from Punta del Este, Uruguay. Initially, it was the...
fossils have been found in the formation: Chile portal Geology portal CerroBallena Coquimbo Formation Navidad Formation Pisco Formation Di Celma, Claudio;...
first defined by Egidio Feruglio in 1949. Arauco Peninsula Arauco Basin CerroBallena Las Peñas (Tubul Fm) at Fossilworks.org García A., Floreal (1968). Ceccioni...
Sierra de la Ballena, Cerro Caballero, Cerro de la Cruz and the location "Abra del Pedromo", with a statue of San Francisco on the hill Cerro de Francés...
the Pacific Plate. From north to south: Imperial Fault Zone Cerro Prieto Fault Ballenas Fault Partida Fault San Lorenzo Fault Guaymas Fault Carmen Fault...
árbol) The Hummingbird (el colibrí) The Condor (el cóndor) The Whale (la ballena) The Astronaut (el astronauta) The Pelican[citation needed] The Dog (el...
mountains of Patagonia, such as the Monte San Valentín, Cerro Arenales, Cerro Hyades and Cerro Pared Norte. This park contains a number of rivers. San...
Cerro Pelado Chihuahua Laguna del Diario Laguna del Sauce Las Cumbres Los Ceibos Los Corchos Maldonado Pinares-Las Delicias Portezuelo Punta Ballena According...
team's remaining funds. Even though they tried to earn some money at the Ballena National Marine Park, Shuntelle & Michael decided to quit the race at the...
Nueve Cerros, Guatemala. Socorro, New Mexico: Ballena. Dillon, Brian (1977). Salinas de los Nueve Cerros, Guatemala. Socorro, New Mexico: Ballena. Arroyo...
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