Postosuchus
Name: Postosuchus
(Crocodile from Post).
Phonetic: Poest-oh-sook-us.
Named By: Sankar Chatterjee - 1985.
Classification: Chordata, Reptilia, Diapsida,
Rauisuchia, Rauisuchidae.
Species: P. kirkpatricki (type),
P. alisonae.
Diet: Carnivore.
Size: 4-5 meters long.
Known locations: Across the USA, Specifically
found in Arizona, New Mexico, North Carolina and Texas.
Time period: Carnian to the Norian of the Triassic.
Fossil representation: Many fossils including
articulated skeletons.
With
a tough
hide and powerful jaws, the rauisuchian
genus Postosuchus was one of
the apex predators of
its time. First discovered in the US state of Texas, Postsuchus
had a wide distribution that stretched all the way to the Eastern
seaboard.
The
head was deep with many
fenestrae, adaptations that point towards powerful biting muscles.
The teeth were serrated and large growing to at least seven
centimetres. Fossil evidence suggests that Postosuchus
also had a
Vomeronasal organ, an auxiliary organ for smell. The
hide appears to have been
armoured with preserved specimens displaying evidence of osteoderms
which would give Postosuchus a crocodilian
appearance.
The
forelimbs on Postosuchus
are a little over half of the total length of the rear legs and this
has led to a lot of speculation as to whether Postosuchus
was bipedal
or quadrapedal. The tough hide and large jaws carried forward of the
hips would have required plenty of support for long distance travel.
Further the pectoral girdle was strong suggesting a weight bearing
function. The rear feet however are larger than the fore suggesting
that more weight was carried on them than the front. It is possible
that Postosuchus may have been both bipedal and
quadrupedal depending
on the situation. It may even have been a predatory adaptation
allowing it to rear up high and bite into the neck or spine of its prey.
Further reading
- Postosuchus, a new thecodontian reptile from the
Triassic of Texas
and the origin of tyrannosaurs - Philosophical Transactions of the
Royal Society of London, Series B: Biological Sciences
309(1139):395-460 - S. Chatterjee - 1985.
- Late Triassic (Carnian and Norian) tetrapods from the southwestern
United States - New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science,
Bulletin 4: 1–254. - Robert A. Long & Ohillip Murry - 1995.
- Osteology and relationships of Postosuchus kirkpatricki
(Archosauria:
Crurotarsi) - M.S. thesis, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas. -
Jonathan C. Weinbaum - 2002.
- A new specimen of Postosuchus from the Late
Triassic Coelophysis
Quarry, siltstone member, Chinle Formation, Ghost Ranch, New Mexico -
M.S. thesis, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill,
North Carolina. - Stephanie E. novak - 2004.
- A new suchian archosaur from the Upper Triassic of North Carolina. -
Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 28(2):363-381 - K. Peyer, J. G.
Carter, H. Sues, S. E. Novak & P. E. Olsen - 2008.
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