‘Hypercarnivore’ crocodile relative that ripped apart dinosaurs discovered
Scientists discover crocodile ancestor species
- Scientists have identified a new "hypercarnivore" crocodile-relative species, Kostensuchus atrox, in Argentina.
- The fossil, discovered in Argentina's Chorrillo Formation, dates back approximately 70 million years to the late Cretaceous period.
- Kostensuchus atrox was an apex predator, estimated to be around 3.5 metres long and weighing 250 kg.
- Its powerful jaw and large teeth enabled it to prey on medium-sized dinosaurs, making it the second-largest predator known from the site.
- This species was an extinct peirosaurid crocodyliform, related to modern crocodiles, and not a dinosaur.