Purussaurus

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iPurussaurus
Conservation status
Extinct (fossil)
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Sauropsida Order: Crocodilia Suborder: Eusuchia Superfamily: Alligatoroidea Genus: Purussaurus Holland, 1909
Species
P. brasiliensis (type) P. mirandae

Purussaurus was a giant caiman living in South America, 20 million years ago (Miocene). It is only known from skull material found in Peruvian Amazonia. The skull is about 1.5 meters (5 ft), and paleontologists estimate that the whole body would have measured around 15 meters (50 ft), which means that Purussaurus is one of the largest crocodilians known to have ever existed. Two other extinct crocodilians, Sarcosuchus and Deinosuchus, have similar proportions, but both are geologically much older, dating from the Early and Late Cretaceous, respectively. During summer 2005, a franco-peruvian expedition (the Fitzcarrald expedition) found new fossils of Purussaurus in Amazonia (600 km from Lima).