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Neosuchian
Neosuchia is a clade within Mesoeucrocodylia that includes all modern extant crocodilians and their closest fossil relatives. It is defined as the most inclusive clade containing all crocodylomorphs more closely related to ''Crocodylus niloticus'' (the Nile Crocodile) than to ''Notosuchus terrestris''. Members of Neosuchia generally share a crocodilian-like bodyform adapted to freshwater aquatic life, as opposed to the terrestrial habits of more basal crocodylomorph groups. The earliest neosuchian is suggested to be the Early Jurassic ''Calsoyasuchus'', which lived during the Sinemurian and Pliensbachian stages in North America. It is often identified as a member of Goniopholididae, though this is disputed, and the taxon may lie outside Neosuchia, which places the earliest records of the group in the Middle Jurassic. Characteristics A tooth notch between the maxilla and premaxilla is a basal characteristic of the Neosuchia, although it is lost in some more derived forms, most nota ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Amphicotylus Milesi
''Amphicotylus'' is an extinct genus of goniopholidid mesoeucrocodylian from the Tithonian of Colorado, Wyoming, and Oklahoma. It was species description, described in 1878.E. D. Cope. 1878. Descriptions of new extinct Vertebrata from the Upper Tertiary and Dakota Formations. 'Bulletin of the United States Geological and Geographical Survey of the Territories'', 4(2):379-396 Discovery and species ''Amphicotylus'' was first described by Edward Drinker Cope in 1878 based on dorsal and lumbar vertebrae, ribs and osteoderms. Based on these remains, found in the same locality as Camarasaurus, ''Camarasaurus supremus'', Cope determined the animal to have been smaller in size than the extant American Alligator and named the species ''A. lucasii'' after Superintendent Lucas who initially made the discovery. Cope also collected skull material from the same locality and level, however did not refer it to ''Amphicotylus''. The cranial material was examined by Charles C. Mook in 1942 who refer ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bernissartiidae
Bernissartiidae is an extinct family of neosuchian crocodyliformes known from the Early Cretaceous. Bernissartiid fossils have been reported from Belgium, France, Spain, England, Tunisia and the United States. It currently contains two genera, ''Bernissartia'' from the Barremian aged Sainte-Barbe Clays of Belgium and '' Koumpiodontosuchus'' from the equivalently aged Wessex Formation in southern England. Members of this family display adaptations for a durophagous lifestyle, especially the heterodont dentition of ''Koumpiodontosuchus''. Indeterminate remains have been reported from the Oum ed Diab Member of Tunisia, the Cloverly Formation and Arundel Clay of the United States, and the La Huérguina Formation, Blesa Formation, Villanueva de Huerva Formation, El Castellar Formation, Camarillas Formation and El Collado Formation of Spain, and the Angeac-Charente bonebed The Angeac-Charente bonebed is a fossil deposit located near Angeac-Charente in western France. It dates to the Be ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Montsecosuchus
''Montsecosuchus'' is an extinct genus of atoposaurid crocodylomorphs. It is the replacement generic name for ''Alligatorium depereti'', which was described in 1915 from the Montsec Lithographic Limestone quarry of Spain. Fossils found from this locality are from the Early Cretaceous, being Upper Berriasian-Lower Valanginian in age, belonging to the La Pedrera de Rúbies Formation While many publications concerning atoposaurids after 1915 have included mentions of ''A. depereti'', none has offered a redescription or revision of the species, though some recognized that great differences existed between it and other members of the genus. In these publications, the skull of ''A. depereti'' was shorter in relation to body length than any other species of ''Alligatorium'' (being less than half of the presacral length), and this may have been evidence for the genetic distinction of the species, although no replacement name was proposed. However, better preparation of the holotype speci ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Paluxysuchidae
Coelognathosuchia is an extinct clade of neosuchian crocodyliforms that includes all taxa more closely related to the family Pholidosauridae than to '' Bernissartia fagesii'' or Eusuchia. Martin ''et al.'' (2014) named the clade after finding goniopholidids and pholidosaurids to group together in their phylogenetic analysis of crocodyliform evolutionary relationships. In their analysis, Pholidosauridae was monophyletic and Goniopholididae was paraphyletic, being an assemblage of successively more basal taxa within Coelognathosuchia. Coelognathosuchia itself was positioned near the base of the larger clade Neosuchia as the sister group to a clade containing the Early Cretaceous neosuchian ''Bernissartia'' and Eusuchia, the group that includes all modern crocodilians and their closest extinct relatives. Martin ''et al.'' named Coelognathosuchia from the Greek (, "concave"), (, "jaw") and (, "crocodile"), after a small depression on the surface of the skull between the maxilla an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Calsoyasuchus
''Calsoyasuchus'' (meaning " r. KyrilCalsoyas' crocodile") is a genus of crocodylomorph that lived in the Early Jurassic. Its fossilized remains were found in the Sinemurian-Pliensbachian-age Kayenta Formation on Navajo Nation land in Coconino County, Arizona, United States. Formally described as ''C. valliceps'', it is known from a single incomplete skull which is unusually derived for such an early crocodile relative. This genus was described in 2002 by Ronald Tykoski and colleagues; the specific name means "valley head" and refers to a deep groove along the midline of the nasal bones and frontal bones. It has often been interpreted as the earliest diverging member of Goniopholididae, but other studies have recovered it in various other positions. Description The holotype skull ( TMM 43631-1) that would be named ''Calsoyasuchus'' was discovered in 1997 by members of an expedition composed of crews from Texas Memorial Museum of the University of Texas at Austin, the Museum of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gilchristosuchus
''Gilchristosuchus'' (meaning "Gilchrist [the owners of the ranch where the type specimen was found] crocodile") is an extinct genus of neosuchian crocodyliform.Crocodyliformes and Neosuchia are clades that include all living crocodilians and successively smaller subsets of their closest extinct relatives. Its fossils have been found in the upper Milk River Formation of Alberta, Canada, in rocks of either latest Santonian or earliest Campanian age (Late Cretaceous). ''Gilchristosuchus'' was described in 1993 by Wu and Brinkman. The type species is ''G. palatinus'', in reference to its distinctive palatine bone, palatine bones. ''Gilchristosuchus'' is holotype, based on Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology, RTMP 91.101.1, a partial anatomical terms of location, posterior skull and a neck vertebra. The skull would have been about long when complete. It represents the first articulated crocodylomorph specimen from the Milk River Formation. Isolated remains had been found ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Khoratosuchus
''Khoratosuchus'' is an extinct genus of neosuchian crocodylomorph which existed in northeast Thailand during the early Cretaceous period. Its type species is ''Khoratosuchus jintasakuli''. ''Khoratosuchus'' is the youngest and most advanced Mesozoic crocodyliform yet known from Thailand. It possesses several distinctive features that help determine its phylogenetic position among crocodylomorphs, including secondary choanae relatively posterior and almost encircled by the pterygoid bones on the palate The palate () is the roof of the mouth in humans and other mammals. It separates the oral cavity from the nasal cavity. A similar structure is found in crocodilians, but in most other tetrapods, the oral and nasal cavities are not truly sepa ... and a smooth dorsal surface of the skull.Lauprasert, K.; Cuny, G.; Thirakhupt, K. and Suteethorn, V. 2009. ''Khoratosuchus jintasakuli'' gen. et sp. nov., an advanced neosuchian crocodyliform from the Early Cretaceous (Aptian-Albian) ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Burkesuchus
''Burkesuchus'' (meaning "Coleman Burke's crocodile") is an extinct genus of basal neosuchians from the Upper Jurassic (Tithonian)-aged Toqui Formation of southern Chile. The genus is currently represented by a single species ''B. mallingrandensis'', named and described in 2021 on the basis of the holotype and additional referred specimens. ''Burkesuchus mallingrandensis'' was noticeably small being around an estimated 70 cm (27.5 inches) in length. The cranium is dorsoventrally depressed and transversely wide posteriorly and distinguished by a posterroventrally flexed wing-like squamosal. ''Burkesuchus'' was a small carnivore likely on invertebrates animals such as insects, crustaceans and may had feed on small aquatic vertebrates like fish. ''B''. ''mallingrandensis'' did not have the ability to feed on large prey items or tear large chunks of meat like modern day crocodiles do. The holotype SQO.PV 17700, consist of a cervical neural arch, partial neurocranium, four dorsal v ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eusuchia
Eusuchia is a clade of crocodylomorphs that first appeared in the Early Cretaceous with ''Hylaeochampsa''. Along with Dyrosauridae and Sebecosuchia, they were the only crocodyliformes who survived the K-T extinction. Since the other two clades died out 47 and 11 million years ago respectively, all living crocodilian species are eusuchians, as are many extinct forms. Definition Eusuchia was originally defined by Thomas Henry Huxley in 1875 as an apomorphy-based group, meaning that it was defined by shared characteristics rather than relations. These characteristics include pterygoid-bounded choanae and vertebrae which are procoelous (concave from the front and convex from the back). The possibility that these traits may have been convergently evolved in different groups of neosuchians rather than one lineage spurred some modern paleontologists to revise the group's definition to make it defined solely by relations. In 1999, Christopher Brochu redefined Eusuchia as "the last common ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sinemurian
In the geologic timescale, the Sinemurian is an age and stage in the Early or Lower Jurassic Epoch or Series. It spans the time between 199.3 ± 2 Ma and 190.8 ± 1.5 Ma (million years ago). The Sinemurian is preceded by the Hettangian and is followed by the Pliensbachian. In Europe the Sinemurian age, together with the Hettangian age, saw the deposition of the lower Lias, in Great Britain known as the Blue Lias. Stratigraphic definitions The Sinemurian Stage was defined and introduced into scientific literature by French palaeontologist Alcide d'Orbigny in 1842. It takes its name from the French town of Semur-en-Auxois, near Dijon. The calcareous soil formed from the Jurassic limestone of the region is in part responsible for the character of the classic Sancerre wines. The base of the Sinemurian Stage is at the first appearance of the ammonite genera ''Vermiceras'' and '' Metophioceras'' in the stratigraphic record. A global reference profile ( GSSP or golden spike) for ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pliensbachian
The Pliensbachian is an age of the geologic timescale and stage in the stratigraphic column. It is part of the Early or Lower Jurassic Epoch or Series and spans the time between 190.8 ± 1.5 Ma and 182.7 ± 1.5 Ma (million years ago). The Pliensbachian is preceded by the Sinemurian and followed by the Toarcian. The Pliensbachian ended with the extinction event called the Toarcian turnover. During the Pliensbachian, the middle part of the Lias was deposited in Europe. The Pliensbachian is roughly coeval with the Charmouthian regional stage of North America. Stratigraphic definitions The Pliensbachian takes its name from the hamlet of Pliensbach in the community of Zell unter Aichelberg in the Swabian Alb, some 30 km east of Stuttgart in Germany. The name was introduced into scientific literature by German palaeontologist Albert Oppel in 1858. The base of the Pliensbachian is at the first appearances of the ammonite species '' Bifericeras donovani'' and genera ''Apoderocer ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mesoeucrocodylia
Mesoeucrocodylia is the clade that includes Eusuchia and crocodyliforms formerly placed in the paraphyletic group Mesosuchia. The group appeared during the Early Jurassic, and continues to the present day. Diagnosis It was long known that Mesosuchia was an evolutionary grade, a hypothesis confirmed by the phylogenetic analysis of Benton and Clark (1988) which demonstrated that Eusuchia (which includes all living crocodylian species) was nested within Mesosuchia. Due to the paraphyly of Mesosuchia, Mesoeucrocodylia was erected to replace Mesosuchia. Several anatomical characteristics differentiate Mesoeucrocodylia from the other crocodylomorph clades. The frontal bones of the skull are fused together into a single compound element, for example. Mesoeucrocodylians possess something of a secondary palate, formed by the posterior extension of sutured palatine bones. The otic aperture of the members of this clade is blocked posteriorly by the squamosal bone. Classification Ph ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
