In Depth Initially thought to represent Pedeticosaurus, though not assigned to an exact species, Litargosuchus was later established upon the description of a complete skull and partial post cranial skeleton. Litargosuchus would have been a fast running predator of smaller vertebrates such as lizards, though larger invertebrates may have also been taken. Further Reading - … Read more
In Depth When named in 1896, Cynodontosuchus was not only the earliest known sebecosuchian crocodile, it was also the first confirmed as living before the Cenozoic period. Since this time there are now several Cretaceous sebecosuchian crocodiles known to us, and one of these genera, Baurusuchus, has been proposed by some to be a junior … Read more
In Depth At between eleven and thirteen meters long it goes without saying that Purussaurus was an apex predator capable of attacking large prey. As a caiman crocodile, Purussaurus had an extremely stout and robust skull that housed large conical teeth suited for gripping and holding onto powerful prey. Purussaurus is one of the growing … Read more
In Depth Theriosuchus is a genus of small neosuchian crocodylomorph that was fairly common across Europe, but is now also known to have lived in North Africa and Asia. Two former species of Theriosuchus, T. ibericus and T. sympiestodon, now reside in their own genus, Sabresuchus. Further Reading - A new species of Theriosuchus (Atoposauridae, … Read more
In Depth A relative of Allodaposuchus, Lohuecosuchus was a crocodile that lived in Western Europe during the late Cretaceous. Further Reading - New Crocodyliforms from Southwestern Europe and Definition of a Diverse Clade of European Late Cretaceous Basal Eusuchians. - PLoS ONE 10(11):e0140679:1-34. - I. Narv�ez, C. A. Brochu, F. Escaso, A. P�rez-Garc�a & F. … Read more
In Depth The genus Lorosuchus represents one of if not the most primitive sebecid crocodiles currently known. Lorosuchus is named after the Rio Loro Formation where the holotype fossils were discovered. Further Reading – A new sebecid mesoeucrocodylian from the Rio Loro Formation (Palaeocene) of north-western Argentina. – Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 163:S7-S36. … Read more
In Depth Sahitisuchus is a genus of sebesuchid crocodile that lived in South America during the Paleocene/Eocene. Sahitisuchus is thought to have been semi aquatic and as a sebesuchis would have been related to genera such as Sebecus, Langstonia and Zulmasuchus. Further Reading - A new sebecid from the Paleogene of Brazil and the crocodyliform … Read more
In Depth Although only described from very incomplete remains, a number of things can be inferred about Barreirosuchus. Comparison to other notosuchian genera indicates that in life Barreirosuchus may have been up to four meters long. The discovery of a nearby turtle rib is also taken as an indication that Barreirosuchus was at least semi-aquatic. … Read more
In Depth Named in 2015 alongside Kuttanacaiman and Caiman wannlangstoni, Gnatusuchus was a small genus of caiman crocodile that lived in what is now Peru during the Miocene. The part of Peru that Gnatusuchus is known from would have been an expanse of freshwater swamp at this time, and in this swamp there seems to … Read more
In Depth Since its description in 1989, Zhyrasuchus has remained only known by fragmentary remains. As such, although Zhyrasuchus has been considered to be a eusuchian, and therefore a relative of modern crocodiles, palaeontologists still cannot be certain how Zhyrasuchus was related. Zhyrasuchus is also known to have lived at the same time and locations … Read more