Dyrosaurus

Artistic Living reconstruction

• Morocco, Algeria, North Africa

Dyrosaurus was a Dyrosaurid from the Eocene. Its closest living relatives are the crocodiles, with whom he is not related directly.

Species

It has been described in two ways:

• Dyrosaurus phosphaticus
• Dyrosaurus maghribensis

D. phosphaticus is the type species. D. maghribensis was discovered only in 2006 in Morocco.

Description

The muzzle of a Dyrosaurus resembled a Gavial, with whom he is not closely related. He had a lot of teeth in its mouth, which were specialized to grab slippery prey. The legs were short and stocky, while his body was flat and streamlined. The tail was long and strong, which is an indication that Dyrosaurus was a good swimmer.

Dyrosaurus was 6 feet long. Today gavials be just as long.

Way of life

The bones of Dyrosaurus was found in Tunisia and Morocco, where there was a tropical sea in the Eocene. This suggests the view that Dyrosaurus was a sea dweller. His snout studded with teeth was far from perfect for catching fish.

The mating behavior of Dyrosaurus was similar to that of modern crocodiles. But since Dyrosaurus lived in the sea, he would have gotten surviving pups.