Crocodylus anthropophagus

Crocodylus anthropophagus is an extinct species of crocodile from the Pleistocene of Tanzania. It lived 1.84 million years ago.[1] It was a large-sized predator reaching a length of 7.5 m (25 ft).[2][3]

Crocodylus anthropophagus
Temporal range: Pleistocene,
Reconstruction of Crocodylus anthropophagus
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Crocodilia
Family: Crocodylidae
Genus: Crocodylus
Species:
†C. anthropophagus
Binomial name
†Crocodylus anthropophagus
Brochu et al., 2010

Etymology

Crocodylus anthropophagus was first named by Christopher A. Brochu, Jackson Njau, Robert J. Blumenschine and Llewellyn D. Densmore in 2010. The specific name anthropophagus is from Greek word "anthropos" that means "human" and Greek word "phagos" that means "eater", in reference to the evidence that this animal included hominids in its diet.[1]

Taxonomy

The holotype specimen, NNHM-1001, comprises a skull and partial skeleton. All specimens were discovered in Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania, in two different rock formations dating to 1.845 and 1.839 million years ago in the Plio-Pleistocene.[1] The cladogram below is from a 2021 study based on the finding of a new C. anthropophagus partial cranium.[4]

Crocodylinae

Mecistops cataphractus West African slender-snouted crocodile

Crocodylus thorbjarnarsoni†

Crocodylus anthropophagus†

Crocodylus niloticus Nile crocodile

Crocodylus checchiai†

Crocodylus moreletii Morelet's crocodile

Crocodylus intermedius Orinoco crocodile

Crocodylus acutus American crocodile

Crocodylus rhombifer Cuban crocodile

Crocodylus palaeindicus†

Crocodylus palustris Mugger crocodile

Crocodylus ossifragus†

Crocodylus siamensis Siamese crocodile

Crocodylus mindorensis Philippine crocodile

Crocodylus johnstoni Freshwater crocodile

Crocodylus porosus Saltwater crocodile

Crocodylus raninus Borneo crocodile

Crocodylus novaeguineae New Guinea crocodile  
Paleoafrican Crocodylus
Neotropical Crocodylus
Indo-Pacific Crocodylus

Description
Postcranial material referred to Crocodylus anthropophagus

The skeleton is consistent with living representatives of the genus. The axis vertebra has a projection on the underside (a hypapophysis) which seems to have largely fused to the vertebra itself. The vertebrae are procoelous in shape, with a spherical projection extending from the back side which attaches to a concave socket on the front end of the preceding vertebra. The femora slightly bend in an S-shape. However, C. anthropophagus lacks the shallow bony pair of crests running from the eyes to the nose like in Indopacific Crocodylus, and lacks a boss (a lump of bone) on the middle of the snout like in Neotropical Crocodylus.

The right premaxilla (the bone that makes up the front end of the snout) of the holotype preserved three tooth sockets, with a notable gap in between the first and second sockets. Another specimen's left maxilla (the bone that makes up the back end of the snout) preserved 13 circular sockets, though it may have partially preserved a 14th. There was a gap between the 9th and 10th. The teeth were all conical and lacked serrations.

It had two prominent, triangular “horns” over the ears.[1]

Mandibular remains of Crocodylus anthropophagus

Paleoecology

Crocodylus anthropophagus was the largest predator encountered by human ancestors at Olduvai Gorge, as indicated by hominin specimens preserving crocodile bite marks from these sites. Its type locality is near those for Homo habilis and Paranthropus boisei.[1]

References

This article incorporates CC-BY-2.5 text from the reference.[1]

  1. Christopher A. Brochu; Jackson Njau; Robert J. Blumenschine; Llewellyn D. Densmore (2010). "A New Horned Crocodile from the Plio-Pleistocene Hominid Sites at Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania". PLoS ONE. 5 (2): e9333. Bibcode:2010PLoSO...5.9333B. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0009333. PMC 2827537. PMID 20195356.
  2. "Crocodylus anthropophagus". Palaeocritti.com. Archived from the original on 14 June 2016.
  3. Ewen Callaway (24 February 2010). "Monster crocodile was ancient human nightmare". New Scientist. Archived from the original on 7 December 2021.
  4. Azzarà, Beatrice; Boschian, Giovanni; Brochu, Christopher; Delfino, Massimo; Iurino, Dawid Adam; Kimambo, Jackson Stanley; Manzi, Giorgio; Masao, Fidelis T.; Menconero, Sofia; Njau, Jackson K; Cherin, Marco (2021). "A new cranium of Crocodylus anthropophagus from Olduvai Gorge, northern Tanzania". Rivista Italiana di Paleontologia e Stratigrafia (Research in Paleontology and Stratigraphy). 127 (2): 275–295. doi:10.13130/2039-4942/15771.
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