The Giant Crocodyliform Sarcosuchus from the Cretaceous of Africa
Paul C. Sereno,1*
Hans C. E. Larsson,2
Christian A. Sidor,3
Boubé Gado4
New fossils of the giant African crocodyliform Sarcosuchus
imperator clarify its skeletal anatomy, growth patterns, size, longevity, and phylogenetic position. The skull has an expansive narial
bulla and elongate jaws studded with stout, smooth crowns that do not
interlock. The jaw form suggests a generalized diet of large
vertebrates, including fish and dinosaurs. S. imperator is
estimated to have grown to a maximum body length of at least 11 to 12 meters and body weight of about 8 metric tons over a life-span of 50 to
60 years. Unlike its closest relatives, which lived as specialized
piscivores in marginal marine habitats, S. imperator thrived
in fluvial environments.
1 Department of Organismal Biology and Anatomy,
University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637, USA.
2 Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology,
Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511, USA.
3 Department of Anatomy, New York College of
Osteopathic Medicine, Old Westbury, NY 11568, USA.
4 Institut de Recherches en Sciences Humaines,
Niamey, Niger Republic.
*
To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail:
dinosaur{at}uchicago.edu
