Page 117 - Prehistoric Animals

Salt-O-Pos-Okus

Saltoposuchus

Saltoposuchus (Leaping (jumping) crocodile) is
an extinct genus crocodylomorph* reptile and is also a member
of the Sphenosuchia** clade or group. It roamed the earth
around the Middle to Late Triassic about 212 to 215 million
years ago. It was around 1 to 2 metres in length and about 10 to
15 kg in weight. It was named, by, Frederich von Huene in 1921,
when he discovered two species, Saltoposuchus connectens and
Saltoposuchus longipes in the Burrer Quarry, Pfaffenhofen, in
south-west Germany.

Saltoposuchus had a long pointed skull and its jaws were
lined with small slender pointed teeth. It was built like a small
theropod dinosaur, with a slender body, long rear limbs and
shorter front limbs. It had a double row of bony scutes along its
back and a long slender tail. Although, it has often been referred
to as a dinosaur; it is not a dinosaur.

It’s generally accepted the Saltoposuchus was committed
to a life on land. It’s also thought it spend most of its time, erect,
moving around on its hindlegs, using all fours only when rest-
ing. With its slender build and long slender hindlegs it would
have been capable of moving at very high speeds. So-much-so
that it’s been described as the ‘greyhound’ reptile.

The type and structure of its teeth strongly suggest it was
a carnivore, however, no food remains have been found in fos-
sils to corroborate this. To get some idea of its diet, comparisons
have been made with like reptiles. Their diet consisted of small
prey like mammals, lizards or insects, even, in some cases, can-
nibalising the young of the species. As a carnivore, it’s believed,
Saltoposuchus diet would have been very similar to those like
reptiles, even down to the cannibalism, if food was scares.

*Crocodylomorph
is a group that contains crocodilian groups, believed to be
the direct ancestor of the present day crocodiles. However, the
genus Saltoposuchus is believed not to be one of those ancestral
groups.

**Sphenosuchia (Wikipedia)
is a suborder of basal crocodylomorphs that first ap-
peared in the Triassic and occurred into the Middle Jurassic.
Most were small, gracile animals with an erect limb posture.
They are now thought to be ancestral to crocodyliforms, a
group which includes all living crocodilians.