Gavialosuchus

Taxobox
name = "Gavialosuchus"


image_width =
fossil_range=late Oligocene-early Pliocene
regnum = Animalia
phylum = Chordata
classis = Sauropsida
ordo = Crocodilia
familia = Gavialidae
genus = "Gavialosuchus"
genus_authority = Toula and Kail, 1885
subdivision_ranks=Species
subdivision=
*"G. eggenburgensis" Toula and Kail, 1885 (type)
*?"G. americanus" (Sellards, 1915 [originally "Tomistoma americanus"] )
*?"G. carolinensis" Erickson and Sawyer, 1996

"Gavialosuchus" is an extinct genus of gavialid from the late Oligocene and Miocene of eastern North America and early Miocene of Europe. Three species have been named: the type species "G. eggenburgensis" from the early Miocene of Austria; "G. americanus", from the late Miocene to early Pliocene of Florida; and "G. carolinensis", from the late Oligocene of South Carolina. Another species, as yet unnamed, may be present in the Miocene of Georgia. "Gavialosuchus" was an estuarine crocodilian, living in shallow marine waters. It was long-snouted and large: "G. carolinensis" was at least 5.37 meters long (17.3 ft).cite book |last=Erickson |first=Bruce R. |authorlink=Bruce Erickson (paleontologist) |coauthors=and Sawyer, Glen T. |year=1996 |title=The estuarine crocodile "Gavialosuchus carolinensis" n. sp. (Crocodylia: Eusuchia) from the late Oligocene of South Carolina, North America |series=The Science Museum of Minnesota St. Paul, Minnesota Monograph 3, Paleontology |publisher=The Science Museum of Minnesota |location=St. Paul |pages=1-47]

As is the case with many fossil taxa, what exactly constitutes "Gavialosuchus" is not a settled question. Myrick Jr. (2001) proposed synonymizing "G. americanus" with "Thecachampsa antiquus".cite journal |last=Myrick |first=A.C., Jr. |year=2001 |title="Thecachampsa antiqua" (Leidy, 1852) (Crocodylidae: Thoracosaurinae) from the fossil marine deposits at Lee Creek Mine, Aurora, North Carolina, USA |journal=Smithsonian Contributions to Paleobiology |volume=90 |pages=219-225] Piras "et al" (2007) advocated transferring both "G. americanus" and "G. carolinensis" to "Thecachampsa" as distinct species of the latter genus.cite journal |last=Piras |first=P. |couathors=Delfino, M.; Del Favero, L.; and Kotsakis, T. |year=2007 |title=Phylogenetic position of the crocodylian "Megadontosuchus arduini" and tomistomine palaeobiogeography |journal=Acta Palaeontologica Polonica |volume=52 |issue=2 |pages=315–328 |url=http://www.app.pan.pl/download.php?src=archive/published/app52/app52-315.pdf&token=3303f4bf3be6a584a2851e091178e33b |format=pdf] Jouve "et al". (2008) retained "G. americanus" in "Gavialosuchus" and found it to be the sister group of "G. eggenburgensis" ("G. carolinensis" was not discussed).cite journal |last=Jouve |first=Stéphane |coauthors=Bardet, Nathalie; Jalil, Nour-Eddine; Suberbiola, Xabier Pereda; Bouya; Baâda; and Amaghzaz, Mbarek |year=2008 |title=The oldest African crocodylian: phylogeny, paleobiogeography, and differential survivorship of marine reptiles through the Cretaceous-Tertiary Boundary |journal=Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology |volume=28 |issue=2 |pages=409-421 ]

References