The discovery of
Miocaperea is significant, because neobalaenines were previously unknown in the fossil record, except for an isolated
petrosal (ear bone) from late Miocene-aged deposits in
Australia. A previous study placed the divergence date of Neobalaeninae from other
mysticetes at about 23 million years, and the age of
Miocaperea lends credence to the notion of an origin for Neobalaeninae deep in the early Miocene. == References ==