Scientists have found the remains of the ancestor of today's crocodiles

Scientists have found the remains of the ancestor of today's crocodiles
Scientists have found the remains of the ancestor of today's crocodiles
Anonim

Argentine and Chilean paleontologists have found the remains of the dwarf "grandfather" of today's crocodiles, who lived 148 million years ago, according to the Science Promotion Agency at the University of Matanza CTyS-UNLaM.

"Argentine and Chilean researchers have discovered a new species that can be regarded as the grandfather of living crocodiles. In adulthood, it was only 70 centimeters in length, it is one of the few crocodiles that inhabited land with dinosaurs at the end of the Jurassic period," - said in the message …

Part of the skull, spine and lower limbs were found in the Patagonian Andes in southern Chile, at an altitude of 1,500 meters above sea level.

"Burkesuchus (as the crocodile was named - ed.) Was a small predator that may have fed on invertebrates such as insects or crustaceans, or small vertebrates. crocodiles, "the agency quotes the words of paleontologist Federico Agnolin.

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In turn, another scientist, Fernando Novas, said that the shape of the skull, body and hind legs of this little creature shows that this species could give rise to modern crocodiles that live in lagoons and rivers.

"For example, you can see the change in the skull, or rather the shutter that he had in the ear region in order to submerge in the water. Thus, Burkesuchus is something like the grandfather of modern crocodiles, it demonstrates the stages of evolution, about which so little is known. in the world, "added Novas.

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