Laganosuchus
Laganosuchus | |
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Lower jaws of L. thaumastos | |
Scientific classification | |
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] |
Type species | |
†Laganosuchus thaumastos Sereno and Larsson, 2009
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Other species[2] | |
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Laganosuchus is an
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
Description
Both species of Laganosuchus are known only from their
Although the posterior end of the lower jaw is not preserved in L. maghrebensis, in L. thaumastos the
L. thaumastos has the first two teeth in each dentary tilted forwards, and these would probably have projected out from the mouth below matching teeth in the premaxilla. Between each alveolus, the dorsal margin of the alveolar row forms a ridge that slopes downwards labially in concave depressions between the alveoli, probably indicating strongly interdigitating teeth that fitted together to form a kind of 'fish trap'. Most of the teeth are broken or missing, but a few were being replaced when the specimen died and have so been preserved in their crypts; they are straight, perfectly symmetrical spikes with no ornamentation, carinae or recurvature. In L. maghrebensis, however, the fourth tooth in the dentary is slightly larger than the first and there is no procumbency of the first dental alveoli, so its front teeth would not have projected forwards in the same fashion.[1]
Both species of Laganosuchus would have been between 4–6 metres (13–20 ft) in total length, a comparatively large proportion of which would have been the large flattened head. It is possible that they had
Paleobiology
According to Sereno and Larsson, 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] These teeth would have fitted together tightly so that no fish trapped in the mouth could escape.
References
- ^ ISSN 1313-2970.
- ^ a b "†Laganosuchus Sereno and Larsson 2009". Paleobiology Database. Fossilworks. Retrieved 17 December 2021.
- ^ a b c Schmid, Randolph E. (19 November 2009). "3 new ancient crocodile species fossils found". The Associated Press.
- S2CID 39658297.
- ^ Devlin, Hannah (20 November 2009). "Meet Boar, Rat and Pancake: the ancient, giant crocodiles found in Sahara". Times Online.