Ancient ’Sea Cow’ Fossils Unearthed in Morocco, Revealing New Species

This new discovery has allowed paleontologists to identify a new genus and a new species of sirenians that they have named Dakhlasiren marocensis, according to a press release from the University of Hassan II.

Sea cows or Sirenians are marine mammals that include the manatee and the dugong that inhabit shallow tropical waters, mainly in the southern hemisphere.

According to the press release, the three current species of manatees live along the Atlantic coasts and in the rivers of Latin America and West Africa, while the dugong lives in the Indian and Pacific Oceans (southwest).