A fossil weighing more than 300 kilos discovered off the coast of Maryland.
A whale skull some 12 million years old has been found on a beach in Chesapeake Bay in the eastern US state, according to a local museum.
The discovery was made in October by Pennsylvania native Cody Goddard, who was looking for fossils and shark teeth, a popular activity in the area, the Calvert Marine Museum said in a statement.
“We had the impression of having won the World Cup of Paleontology!
said Stephen Godfrey, head of paleontology at the museum.
"We don't yet know what species of Miocene whale this is," he added.
A discovery of nearly 300 kilos
"We won't know until he's" ready for review.
According to the museum, it took two months to extract and move the skull, which is embedded in a block of sediment.
The whole thing weighs about 295 kilos.
It is the most complete fossil whale skull to be found in the Calvert Cliffs area, according to the museum, and it has been named "Cody" after its discoverer.
Stephen Godfrey said the skull had been transferred to the museum's fossil lab and that special tools would be used to extricate it from the sediment, a process that will take several months.
