The population size is 8- 10 meter.
The maximum individual length is 1 1.2- 12m.
The weight is 5100-5,500kg (2003, Farlow, Mesozoic crocodile weight estimation paper, calculated by 9-meter alligator specimen), and the upper limit is 8,000kg (2001,Sino, HCE· Larsen, Cassidor, B. Gado, paper), which may reach 8,000kg.
Early Cretaceous apter-Albuquerque period.
The El Rhaz formation in Tenere Desert in Gadoufaoua, Niger.
Environmental coast
Edible meat
Name is Broin et Taquet, 1966.
Genus and species S. imperator King Muscle Crocodile
Other effective species S. hartii crocodile (calculated from 43 cm mandibular fragments found in northeast Brazil)
The maximum individual length is the most reliable 1 1.2m, probably in the early stage of 12m, 6-8 tons. As early as 1964, a Frenchman named Albert-Felix de Lapparent found some huge tooth fossils in Niger, which he dubbed "nails on the rails" and others. These specimens were later handed over to French paleontologists France de Broin and Phillipe Taquet for research. They believe that these fossils belong to a giant crocodile named Sarcosuchus imperator, which is sometimes abbreviated as "Emperor Crocodile" in Chinese, and is a famous crocodile, meaning "Muscle Crocodile". However, because there are too few materials for effective restoration and the French do not pay attention to propaganda, this huge animal has been unknown.
However, in 200 1, this animal became an instant hit and became a hot "star" among paleontologists, thanks to the famous paleontologist Sereno of the University of Chicago. Sereno is different from the old-fashioned and serious paleontologist. He deals with the bones of animals and rocks that have been dead for tens of thousands or even hundreds of millions of years all day. He is a sociable guy, likes to wander in the upper class and likes to show off a little. It is this character that makes him close to the big media and forms an alliance with international media such as National Geographic. So National Geographic always publishes Sereno's findings in the first place.
However, although people in Sereno enjoyed the scenery before, they suffered a lot afterwards, and so did the excavation of crocodile fossils. In 2000, Sereno and his team broke into Tenere Desert ruled by sandstorm. Located in Gadufava, Niger, this desert is a part of the Sahara Desert that divides Africa into "Black Africa" and "North Africa". Although the Sahara Desert in North Africa is lifeless, it is a "blessed land" for Sereno except for Muslim caravans that occasionally cross the desert. He visited here in 1996, and found strange skull fossils of Deltadromeus, Carcharodontosaurus and several crocodiles. This time, Sereno's team also experienced water and food deprivation, lost a lot of weight, and dug up some relatively complete crocodile fossils.
Crocodile fossils excavated in Sereno include skull, cervical vertebra and vertebra, dorsal rib, sacrum and belt, scapula, and bone plate from neck to tail. The number is mnn604-mnn607. Among them, MNN 604 is an adult, MNN 605 and MNN 606 are larvae, and MNN 607 is a sub-adult. These specimens were sent to the government of Niger and exhibited in the National Museum of Niger. King crocodiles belong to the family Dyrosauridae under Neosuchia, a new crocodile. The so-called forest crocodiles are all animals similar to alligators, but some people classify forest crocodiles (Dyrosaurus) and muscle crocodiles as Pholidosauridae. There is also a little-known close relative called Sarcosuchus hartii, which has only one mandible.
The skull of the emperor muscle crocodile is slender, but it is not as exaggerated as some casual publications say; The Chinese alligator's skull is1.78m long, and its mouth and nose account for about 75%. The mandible is slightly shorter than the skull. The anterior maxilla is wide, with a circular vertical tumor, and the vertical tumor in the anterior maxilla is about 25% wider than the maxilla. This tumor is similar to Ghara of male alligators, but different from alligators, it exists in the skulls of all muscle crocodiles, so it is not a secondary sexual feature; Therefore, the role of tumor may be to help the sense of smell, increase the bite force or vocal organs. The maxilla is very long, and the nasal bone is particularly slender. There is only one round external nostril, surrounded by a vertical tumor in the front of the maxilla; The internal nostril of palatal vision is separated by a narrow pterygoid bone. No pre-orbital foramen or pre-orbital fossa was found (pre-orbital foramen was found in Brein, but not in MNN 604); The supratemporal foramen is slightly larger than the orbit (Sereno et al., 200 1).
The teeth of emperor muscle crocodile are conical, the crown has longitudinal ridge, the cross section is round and the teeth are particularly thick; Although these teeth are not suitable for tearing the meat of prey, they are very suitable for fixing prey, especially smooth aquatic animals. The tooth types of Alligator sinensis are maxillary teeth 5, maxillary teeth 30 and dentate teeth 3 1, which means that Alligator sinensis has 132 teeth. There is a gap of about 10 cm between the upper and lower jaws, and the left-right spacing of dentate teeth is smaller than that of maxillary teeth. Crocodiles belong to "pseudoheterodontia", with the third and fourth premolars (pm3, pm4), the tenth maxilla (m 10), and the third and fourth teeth (d3, d4) larger. These larger teeth are called "false canine teeth".
The crocodile's body is covered with many membranous bone plates. The so-called membranous bone plate is also called "dermal bone", which is a kind of exoskeleton. Usually, we see that the protrusions on the crocodile's back are membranous bone plates. The largest membranous bone plate of the king crocodile is located in the back, which is more than one meter long, and its size and proportion are much larger than those of the current crocodile. The membranous bone plate of crocodile has a kind of "growth ring", which can record the growth age like tree rings. Sereno analyzed the membranous bone plate of a crocodile, which is 80% of the largest size. It has about forty "growth rings", that is to say, it is about forty years old; Therefore, it is speculated that the emperor muscle crocodile will grow to 50 to 60 years old.