The origins of the killer whale ecomorph

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This dataset is in nexus format and includes the constraint and most parsimonious trees. A separate matrix is included that includes many observations from individual specimens that were used to create composite operational taxonomic units. Analysis of this dataset supports a new species of fossil dolphin as a close relative of Pseudorca and that Orcinus is the sole living species of a once diverse clade. When combined with observations on fossil specimens, our study supports the hypothesis that the macroraptorial feeding in Pseudorca and Orcinus evolved recently, well after gigantism evolved in baleen whales.

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