The Government of the Azores, through the technicians of Santa Maria Natural Park, and the researchers of CIBIO-Açores (Department of Biology of the University of the Azores) have removed from Praínha fossil deposit the jaw of a whale, estimated to be 117-130 thousand years.

The bone, about 1 metre in length, was discovered by individuals who contacted the University of the Azores. Sérgio Avila, a palaeontologist who belongs to the Palaeobiogeography Group of the Azorean university, immediately informed the local Natural Park about the importance of this finding and the urgency in its removal.

The fossil was partially uncovered by adverse sea conditions as a consequence of the passage of Hurricane Gordon which removed large rocks and sands, exposing part of the jaw believed to be of a whale or whalebone. The removal was unavoidable, given the extent of the bone exposed and its state of degradation, which would not survive bad weather conditions.

At the moment, the bone is stored in the premises of Santa Maria Natural Park for cleaning and analysis; it will be displayed at the Dalberto Pombo Environmental Interpretation Centre following the conclusion of the studies and their publication in a speciality journal. The Dalberto Pombo Environmental Interpretation Centre has already exhibited numerous sedimentary rocks with fossils found on Santa Maria in addition to birds, insects and other geological assets that belonged to Dalberto Pombo's personal collection.
 
In the Azores, fossil deposits are only found on the island of Santa Maria, which makes it unique in the context of the archipelago. The Fossil deposits on Santa Maria comprise two distinct periods associated with the sedimentary formation of the island. These deposits are with associated with sedimentary conglomerates and, hence, are not of volcanic origin. 15 fossil deposits date back to the late Miocene - early Pliocene period (7 to 5 million years) whilst 6 deposits date back to the Pleistocene (117 to 130 thousand years); the Praínha fossil deposit belongs to the latter group.

According to the research conducted by palaeontologists from the University of the Azores, this finding is of great importance for the Pleistocene period, particularly for the last interglacial period. This is the first cetacean fossil ever found on oceanic islands worldwide.