Laganosuchus
| Laganosuchus Temporal range: Cenomanian
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|---|---|
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| Lower jaws of L. thaumastos | |
Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Clade: | Archosauria |
| Clade: | Pseudosuchia |
| Clade: | Crocodylomorpha |
| Clade: | Crocodyliformes |
| Family: | †Stomatosuchidae |
| Genus: | †Laganosuchus Sereno and Larsson, 2009[1] |
| Species[2] | |
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Laganosuchus is an extinct genus of stomatosuchid crocodyliform. Fossils have been found from Niger and Morocco and date back to the Upper Cretaceous.[1][2]
Discovery
The name means "pancake crocodile" from the Greek λαγανον, laganon ("pancake") and σοῦχος, souchos ("crocodile") in reference to the shallow depth of the skull, which is characteristic of all stomatosuchids. It has been nicknamed "PancakeCroc" by Paul Sereno and Hans Larsson, who first described the genus in a monograph published in ZooKeys in 2009 along with other Saharan crocodyliformes such as Anatosuchus and Kaprosuchus.[3]
The type species is L. thaumastos from the Cenomanian-age Echkar Formation in Niger. A second species, L. maghrebensis, is known from the Kem Kem Beds in Morocco, which are also Cenomanian in age.[4]
Paleobiology
According to Sereno, L. thaumastos was an approximately 6 m (20 ft) long, squat fish-eater with a 1 m (3.3 ft) flat head.[3] It would have stayed motionless for hours, waiting for prey to swim into its open jaws with spike-shaped teeth.[3][5]
References
- ^ a b Sereno, P. C.; Larsson, H. C. E. (2009). "Cretaceous crocodyliforms from the Sahara". ZooKeys. 28 (19 November 2009): 1–143. doi:10.3897/zookeys.28.325.
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: unflagged free DOI (link) - ^ a b "†Laganosuchus Sereno and Larsson 2009". Paleobiology Database. Fossilworks. Retrieved 20 September 2016.
- ^ a b c Schmid, Randolph E. (19 November 2009). "3 new ancient crocodile species fossils found". The Associated Press.
- ^ Sereno, P. C.; Dutheil, D. B.; Iarochene, M.; Larsson, H. C. E.; Lyon, G. H.; Magwene, P. M.; Sidor, C. A.; Varricchio, D. J.; Wilson, J. A. (1996). "Predatory dinosaurs from the Sahara and Late Cretaceous faunal differentiation". Science. 272 (5264): 986–991. doi:10.1126/science.272.5264.986. PMID 8662584.
- ^ Devlin, Hannah (20 November 2009). "Meet Boar, Rat and Pancake: the ancient, giant crocodiles found in Sahara". Times Online.
External links
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