Purussaurus
Graphical live reconstruction of Purussaurus brasiliensis
- Northern South America
Purussaurus is an extinct genus of crocodiles ( Crocodylia ), which presumably includes the großwüchsigsten representatives within this group. Purussaurus deemed to be relative of caimans ( Caimaninae ), which in turn belong to the alligators ( Alligatoridae ). Its body length is estimated to be up to 15 meters. Purussaurus lived during the upper Miocene, about 15 to eight million years ago, in the northern half of South America. He is known by several skull finds and individual vertebrae and ribs from Venezuela, Colombia, Peru, Bolivia and the Brazilian state of Acre.
Features
Purusaurus the associated head have a length of 1.3 to 1.5 meters. On this basis, the body length of the animals is estimated to be 12 to 15 meters. The skull is moderately built, with wide overhead and fairly close-set eyes. The jaws are very strong and broad. The tip of the snout is relatively round. The front part of the muzzle is strongly arched and with bony bumps and ridges.
System
Currently three types are distinguished: the type species Purussaurus brasiliensis and Purussaurus neivensis first neivensis described as Dinosuchus, and Purussaurus mirandai, which was not described until 2006. The latter has, in comparison to the other species, a particularly flat skull and broader external nares. In P. brasiliensis and P. mirandai the external nasal openings in contrast to P. neivensis are generally very large and elongated and are located at the rear end following " nasal bones " ( nasals ) are formed correspondingly short.
Purussaurus forms with the genuine caiman ( Caiman ) and the black caiman ( Melanosuchus niger) a clade that is the sister group of the smooth front caiman ( Paleosuchus ).
Way of life
Over the life of Purussaurus almost nothing is known. The very large, heavy skull suggests that he lived strictly aquatic. His teeth were flattened at the crown a bit and it could be that he in addition to fish, turtles, crocodiles and other mammals also coming to the watering plants eaten as it is also occasionally do caimans today.