Baurusuchidae
Gondwanan family of terrestrial hypercarnivorous crocodilians.
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Baurusuchidae is a family of mesoeucrocodylians from the Gondwanan landmasses of the Late Cretaceous. These were fully terrestrial, hypercarnivorous crocodilians whose fossils have been found in South America (Argentina and Brazil) and Asia (Pakistan). According to the rules of the PhyloCode, the family is officially defined as the smallest clade that includes the species *Cynodontosuchus rothi*, *Pissarrachampsa sera*, and *Baurusuchus pachecoi*. The group is placed within the suborder Baurusuchia, and two subfamilies have been proposed: Baurusuchinae and Pissarrachampsinae.
Several genera belong to the family. *Baurusuchus* was the first named and gives the family its name; its remains come from the Turonian–Santonian deposits of the Bauru Group in Brazil. Besides *Baurusuchus*, five other South American crocodyliforms have been assigned to Baurusuchidae: *Campinasuchus*, *Cynodontosuchus*, *Pissarrachampsa*, *Stratiotosuchus*, and *Wargosuchus*. *Cynodontosuchus* was the first baurusuchid known to science, described in 1896 by English paleontologist Arthur Smith Woodward, though it was only recently recognized as a member of this family. *Wargosuchus* was described in 2008. Both *Cynodontosuchus* and *Wargosuchus* are known only from fragmentary fossils and come from the Santonian of Argentina. *Stratiotosuchus* was added to the family in 2001. *Pabwehshi*, from the Maastrichtian of Pakistan, was originally assigned to Baurusuchidae in 2001 but has since been reclassified as a basal member of Sebecia. *Campinasuchus* was named in May 2011 from the Turonian–Santonian Adamantina Formation of Brazil’s Bauru Basin. Shortly after, *Pissarrachampsa* was described from the Campanian–Maastrichtian Vale do Rio do Peixe Formation, also in the Bauru Basin.
The family Baurusuchidae was erected in 1945 by Brazilian paleontologist Llewellyn Ivor Price to contain *Baurusuchus*. In 1946, American paleontologist Edwin Harris Colbert created the group Sebecosuchia, uniting Baurusuchidae with the family Sebecidae (represented by *Sebecus*). Both *Baurusuchus* and *Sebecus* share deep snouts and ziphodont teeth—serrated and laterally compressed. Later, other forms with similar appearances were found, including *Cynodontosuchus*, *Stratiotosuchus*, and *Wargosuchus*. Several features were used to link these groups: a deep snout, ziphodont dentition, a curved tooth row, an e
- Time period
- Late Cretaceous
- Geographic range
- South America (Argentina and Brazil) and Asia (Pakistan)
- First named
- 1945 by Llewellyn Ivor Price
- First known genus
- Cynodontosuchus (named 1896)
- Diet
- Terrestrial hypercarnivorous
- Subfamilies
- Baurusuchinae and Pissarrachampsinae
Lore & Background
Several genera have been assigned to Baurusuchidae. Baurusuchus was the first, being the namesake of the family, with remains found from the Late Cretaceous Bauru Group of Brazil in deposits that are Turonian–Santonian in age. In addition to Baurusuchus, five other South American crocodyliforms have been assigned to Baurusuchidae: Campinasuchus, Cynodontosuchus, Pissarrachampsa, Stratiotosuchus, and Wargosuchus. Cynodontosuchus was the first known baurusuchid, named in 1896 by English paleontologist Arthur Smith Woodward, although it was only recently assigned to Baurusuchidae. Wargosuchus was described in 2008. Both Cynodontosuchus and Wargosuchus are known only from fragmentary remains from the Santonian of Argentina. A fourth genus, Stratiotosuchus, was assigned to Baurusuchidae in 2001. Pabwehshi is the youngest genus that has been assigned to Baurusuchidae, from the Maastrichtian of Pakistan, but has since been reassigned as a basal member of Sebecia. A new genus, Campinasuchus, was assigned to the family in May 2011, known from the Turonian-Santonian Adamantina Formation of the Bauru Basin of Brazil. Soon after, the new genus Pissarrachampsa was named from the Campanian–Maastrichtian Vale do Rio do Peixe Formation, also in the Bauru Basin.
Reader's Guide
Baurusuchidae has been central to debates on crocodyliform phylogeny. The family was originally placed in the group Sebecosuchia by Edwin Harris Colbert in 1946, united with Sebecidae by deep snouts and ziphodont dentitions. Many phylogenetic analyses have supported a close relationship between baurusuchids and sebecids, both early members of Metasuchia. Over time, baurusuchids have been allied with notosuchians in the larger group Ziphosuchia, and more recently placed within Notosuchia as derived members. In 2004, the superfamily Baurusuchoidea was established to include baurusuchids and sebecids. A 2005 analysis found Sebecidae paraphyletic while baurusuchids remained a valid grouping of derived sebecosuchians. In 2007, a new clade called Sebecia was erected, splitting baurusuchids and placing some genera as sebecians, making Baurusuchidae paraphyletic. More recent studies, including Montefeltro et al. (2011), have nested Baurusuchus deep within Notosuchia and found Baurusuchidae to be monophyletic, adopting the name Baurusuchia in a phylogenetic sense. Baurusuchidae is node-based, while Baurusuchia is stem-based and more inclusive. Montefeltro et al. (2011) also divided Baurusuchidae into two subfamilies: Pissarrachampsinae (Pissarrachampsa and Wargosuchus) and Baurusuchinae (Stratiotosuchus and Baurusuchus), with Cynodontosuchus as the most basal baurusuchid. Darlim et al. (2021) described a new baurusuchid, Aphaurosuchus, and proposed formal definitions for the clades.
Did You Know?
- Cynodontosuchus was the first known baurusuchid, named in 1896 by English paleontologist Arthur Smith Woodward.
- Baurusuchidae was named by Brazilian paleontologist Llewellyn Ivor Price in 1945.
- Pabwehshi, from the Maastrichtian of Pakistan, was originally assigned to Baurusuchidae but later reassigned as a basal member of Sebecia.
- Montefeltro et al. (2011) divided Baurusuchidae into two subfamilies: Pissarrachampsinae and Baurusuchinae.
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