L.A. Underwater - Atopatarus coursenai

date. 2021

medium. Zbrush 2021 

client. Natural History Museum Los Angeles County

description. Atopotarus coursenai ( Coursens' strange seal ) is another poorly known extinct pinniped from California. Known from only one specemin that is missing the lower half of the body, Atopotarus derives the name "strange seal" because of some unique aspects of its anatomy. While being related to true seals, Atopotarus possessed traits not found in contemporary seals such as external ears, and hindlimbs that could still rotate forward when on land. Working with Associate Curator of Mammalogy for the NHM; Jorge Velez - Jurabe - I created anatomical reconstructions based on the preserved material we had, and extrapolating from related species such as Allodesmus. Final Model was created in Zbrush. Model was rigged and animated for the exhibit by Kain Suwannaphin.