This giant alligator was able to attack the most

Paleontologists have discovered the fossil of a new species of giant crocodilian, called Deinosuchus schwimmeri. Measuring over 10 m, this creature was a formidable predator of large vertebrates in North America along the Atlantic Coastal Plain during the Cretaceous Period, about 80 million years before us.

< p style = ""> According to the reconstruction of the animal, made from fossil remains found in Mississippi and Alabama, it did not look like the alligators or crocodiles we know today, except in level of its morphology.

Photo by Angelo Giordano. Credits Pixabay

According to professors Adam Cossette and Christopher Brochu, of the University of Iowa, who looked into the study of this new specimen, it is likely a predecessor of current crocodilians.

"A bizarre and monstrous predator

Compared to other reptiles of the gAs a group of Crocodilians, the skull of Deinosuchus schwimmeri was significantly larger. But what surprised paleontologists the most was the oddly swollen nose shape at the end of its long, wide snout. A strange conformation whose specific roles remain unknown according to these researchers.

To complement the atypical characteristics of this creature, there is also the remarkable size of its teeth, as large as bananas. It is easy to imagine that this large semi-aquatic predator, moreover opportunistic, was able to attack all the vertebrates that ventured into its habitat.

"The Deinosuchus was a giant who must have terrorized the dinosaurs who came to the water's edge to drink, says Professor Cossette. Dr. Stéphanie Drumheller-Horto of the University of Tennessee agrees, indicating that she has identified bite marks made by this large reptile on the shells ofgiant tortoises and dinosaur bones.

An ascendant of modern alligators

Contrary to popular belief, prejudging that crocodilians were “Living fossils, this finding shows that this group has also evolved over time. Deinosuchus schwimmeri would thus be related to two other species of Deinosuchus, the Deinosuchus hatcheri and Deinosuchus riograndensis , described so far.

Certainly, further research remains essential to understand the evolution of Crocodilians. But the discovery of this new specimen, with two large holes oddly placed at the end of its mouth, already contributes to a better phylogenetic classification of the various specimens of the group.

Their results of this research was recently published in Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology.

Reconstruction of Deinosuchus schwimmeri. Credits Tyler Stone