Harpacochampsa
Appearance
Harpacochampsa Temporal range: Early Miocene
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skull | |
Scientific classification ![]() | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Reptilia |
Clade: | Archosauromorpha |
Clade: | Archosauriformes |
Order: | Crocodilia |
Superfamily: | Gavialoidea |
Genus: | †Harpacochampsa Megirian, Murray & Willis 1991 |
Type species | |
†Harpacochampsa camfieldensis Megirian, Murray & Willis 1991
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Harpacochampsa is a poorly known Early Miocene crocodilian from the Bullock Creek lagerstätte of the Northern Territory, Australia. The current specimen consists of a partial skull and fragments of a slender snout reminiscent of that of a false gharial. It is tentatively placed within Mekosuchinae,[1] though some experts disagree with this, as H. camfieldensis would be the only known mekosuchine with a long, thin snout.[2] Its long snout demonstrates that it was a piscivore in life.[1]
References
- ^ a b Willis, P. M. A., "Review of Crocodilians of Australasia" (pdf).
- ^ Brochu, Christopher A, American Zoologist, June 2001 "Crocodylian snouts toward adaptive radiation".