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PHYTOSAUR FOSSILS FOR SALE
What Is Phytosaurus?
Phytosaurs are members of the order Phytosauria. They are semiaquatic, crocodile-like reptiles characterized by long snouts, conical teeth, short legs, and long, low-slung bodies. They had skin armored with scale like scutes. They also had gastralia (rib-like bones) to protect their bellies.
When Did Phytosaurus Live?
Phytosaurs lived primarily during the Late Triassic, though what is considered to be the earlier phytosaur is still up for debate.
Phytosaurs disappear from the fossil record during the Triassic- Jurassic Extinction, about 200 million years ago. Fossils have found that appear to have been from deposits above the T-J Boundary, but these have generally been misinterpreted sediment layers.
What Did Phytosaurs Look Like?
Generally, phytosaurs looked like modern crocodilians. They had long snouts, mouths with conical teeth, short legs, long bodies with long, heavy tails, and thick armored skin. Some species had longer, thinner snouts with thin conical teeth for catching fish, while others had comparatively shorter, wider snouts with conical teeth in the front and ripping teeth in the back of the mouth. These were likely ambush hunters that snatched prey at the water’s edge, much like modern crocodiles. The longest known phytosaur was 39 feet long and would have been about as tall as a human at the top of its back! Unlike modern crocodilians, whose nostrils are at the ends of their snouts, phytosaurs had their nostrils at the bases of their snouts, just below or at the same level as their eyes.
Leptosuchus (Smilosuchus) gregorii, a phytosaur from the Late Triassic of North America. By Nobu Tamura (http://spinops.blogspot.com) Creative Commons License
Are Phytosaurs Related To Modern Crocodilians?
No, phytosaurs is not related to modern crocodilians. The similarities are an example of convergent evolution, when two different animals develop similar characteristics and attributes without a common ancestor.
Where Are Phytosaur Fossils Found?
Phytosaurs were nearly globally distributed. Their fossils have been found in Europe, North America, India, Thailand, Brazill, Greenland, and even Antarctica.