Crocodylus anthropophagus

Crocodylus anthropophagus is an extinct species of crocodile from the Pleistocene of Tanzania. It lived 1.84 million years ago.[1] It was a large-sized predator reaching a length of 5 m (16 ft).[2]

Crocodylus anthropophagus
Temporal range: 1.84 Ma
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Reconstruction of Crocodylus anthropophagus
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Crocodilia
Family: Crocodylidae
Genus: Crocodylus
Species:
C. anthropophagus
Binomial name
Crocodylus anthropophagus
Brochu et al., 2010

Etymology

Crocodylus anthropophagus was first named by Christopher A. Brochu, Jackson Njau, Robert J. Blumenschine and Llewellyn D. Densmore in 2010. The specific name anthropophagus is from Greek word "anthropos" that means "human" and Greek word "phagos" that means "eater", in reference to the evidence that this animal included hominids in its diet.[1]

Taxonomy

The holotype specimen, NNHM-1001, comprises a skull and partial skeleton. All specimens were discovered in Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania, in two different rock formations dating to 1.845 and 1.839 million years ago in the Plio-Pleistocene.[1]

Crocodylus
 
 

Nile crocodile

 
 New World crocodiles
 

American crocodile

 
 

Orinoco crocodile

 
 

Cuban crocodile

 
 

Mexican crocodile

 
 
 
 

†Crocodylus anthropophagus

 
 

†Crocodylus palaeindicus

 
 
 

Mugger crocodile

 
Indopacific crocodiles
 

Siamese crocodile

 
 
 

Saltwater crocodile

 
 

Freshwater crocodile

 
 

New Guinea crocodile

 
 

Philippine crocodile

 
 
 
 
 

Description
Postcranial material referred to Crocodylus anthropophagus

The skeleton is consistent with living representatives of the genus. The axis vertebra has a projection on the underside (a hypapophysis) which seems to have largely fused to the vertebra itself. The vertebrae are procoelous in shape, with a spherical projection extending from the back side which attaches to a concave socket on the front end of the preceding vertebra. The femora slightly bend in an S-shape. However, C. anthropophagus lacks the shallow bony pair of crests running from the eyes to the nose like in Indopacific Crocodylus, and lacks a boss (a lump of bone) on the middle of the snout like in Neotropical Crocodylus.

The right premaxilla (the bone that makes up the front end of the snout) of the holotype preserved three tooth sockets, with a notable gap in between the first and second sockets. Another specimen's left maxilla (the bone that makes up the back end of the snout) preserved 13 circular sockets, though it may have partially preserved a 14th. There was a gap between the 9th and 10th. The teeth were all conical and lacked serrations.

It had two prominent, triangular “horns” over the ears.[1]

Mandibular remains of Crocodylus anthropophagus

Paleoecology

Crocodylus anthropophagus was the largest predator encountered by human ancestors at Olduvai Gorge, as indicated by hominin specimens preserving crocodile bite marks from these sites. Its type locality is near those for Homo habilis and Paranthropus boisei.[1]

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References

This article incorporates CC-BY-2.5 text from the reference.[1]

  1. Christopher A. Brochu, Jackson Njau, Robert J. Blumenschine and Llewellyn D. Densmore (2010). "A New Horned Crocodile from the Plio-Pleistocene Hominid Sites at Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania". PLoS ONE. 5 (2): e9333. Bibcode:2010PLoSO...5.9333B. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0009333. PMC 2827537. PMID 20195356.CS1 maint: uses authors parameter (link)
  2. http://www.palaeocritti.com/by-group/crocodylomorpha/eusuchia/crocodylus on palaeocritti.com
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