Ticinosuchus

Ticinosuchus
Temporal range: Middle Triassic, Anisian–Ladinian
Ticinosuchus ferox fossil
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Clade: Archosauria
Clade: Pseudosuchia
Clade: Suchia
Genus: †Ticinosuchus
Krebs, 1965
Species
  • T. ferox Krebs, 1965 (type)
Restoration.
Cheirotherium tracefossil, which might have been made by Ticinosuchus, displayed in Oxford University Museum of Natural History.

Ticinosuchus is an extinct genus of pseudosuchian archosaur from the Middle Triassic (Anisian - Ladinian) of Switzerland and Italy.[1]

Discovery

One of only a handful of fossil reptiles that have been found in Switzerland, Ticinosuchus (meaning "Ticino river crocodile") was about 3 metres (10 ft) long, and its whole body, even the belly, was covered in thick, armoured scutes. The structure of the hips shows that its legs were placed under the body almost vertically. Coupled with the development of a calcaneus and a specialized ankle joint, this would have made Ticinosuchus a fast runner, unlike most earlier reptiles.[2]

Ticinosuchus is thought to be very close to or possible even the same species that made the Cheirotherium trace fossils found in Germany. It too shows a narrow track-way, similar to that of Tinicosuchus.

References

  1. ↑ Sterling J. Nesbitt (2011). "The Early Evolution of Archosaurs: Relationships and the Origin of Major Clades" (PDF). Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History. 352: 1–292. doi:10.1206/352.1.
  2. ↑ Palmer, D., ed. (1999). The Marshall Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals. London: Marshall Editions. p. 95. ISBN 1-84028-152-9.
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