Terrestrisuchus
Encyclopedia
Terrestrisuchus is an extinct genus
of early crocodylomorph that was about 50 cm (1 ft 8 in) long. Fossils have been found in Wales
and date from the Late Triassic
.
Terrestrisuchus was a small, thin, lizard
-like creature with long legs, bearing little to no resemblance to modern crocodiles, which are its distant relatives. The shape of the legs suggests that it was able to run fast. Its tail was particularly long, about twice the length of the head and body combined, and may have been used as a balance allowing the animal to rear up and run on its hind legs alone for brief periods.
The legs were positioned directly beneath the body, meaning ancestral crocodiles such as Terrestrisuchus were cursorial and thus, their legs worked as pairs for galloping. Pseudo-galloping can be seen in modern crocodiles as they are known to use paired walking in rare but speed-dependent situations. Fossil evidence also shows that they were digitigrade, supporting their weight on only digits, or fingers.
Some paleontologists suggest that Terrestrisuchus may be juvenile Saltoposuchus
.
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of early crocodylomorph that was about 50 cm (1 ft 8 in) long. Fossils have been found in Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
and date from the Late Triassic
Late Triassic
The Late Triassic is in the geologic timescale the third and final of three epochs of the Triassic period. The corresponding series is known as the Upper Triassic. In the past it was sometimes called the Keuper, after a German lithostratigraphic group that has a roughly corresponding age...
.
Terrestrisuchus was a small, thin, lizard
Lizard
Lizards are a widespread group of squamate reptiles, with nearly 3800 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica as well as most oceanic island chains...
-like creature with long legs, bearing little to no resemblance to modern crocodiles, which are its distant relatives. The shape of the legs suggests that it was able to run fast. Its tail was particularly long, about twice the length of the head and body combined, and may have been used as a balance allowing the animal to rear up and run on its hind legs alone for brief periods.
The legs were positioned directly beneath the body, meaning ancestral crocodiles such as Terrestrisuchus were cursorial and thus, their legs worked as pairs for galloping. Pseudo-galloping can be seen in modern crocodiles as they are known to use paired walking in rare but speed-dependent situations. Fossil evidence also shows that they were digitigrade, supporting their weight on only digits, or fingers.
Some paleontologists suggest that Terrestrisuchus may be juvenile Saltoposuchus
Saltoposuchus
Saltoposuchus is an extinct genus of small , long- tailed crocodylomorph reptile , from the Norian of Europe. The name translated means "leaping crocodile". It has been proposed that Terrestrisuchus gracilis and Saltoposuchus connectens represent different ontogenetic stages of the same genus...
.