Titanosuchus ferox ("Fierce titan crocodile") is an extinct species of dinocephalian therapsids that lived in the Middle Permian epoch in South Africa.
| Titanosuchus Temporal range: Capitanian,
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Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Clade: | Synapsida |
| Clade: | Therapsida |
| Suborder: | †Dinocephalia |
| Family: | †Titanosuchidae |
| Genus: | †Titanosuchus Owen, 1876 |
| Species: | †T. ferox
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| Binomial name | |
| †Titanosuchus ferox Owen, 1879
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| Synonyms | |
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Along with its close relatives, Jonkeria and Moschops, Titanosuchus inhabited present-day South Africa around 265 million years ago, in the Late Permian. Titanosuchus was a carnivore which measured over 2.5 m long and might have eaten both Jonkeria and Moschops, among other vertebrates.[1] Its teeth included sharp incisors and fang-like canines, perfect for biting prey.[2]
Titanosuchus should not be confused with the therapsid Eotitanosuchus, which belonged to a different family.
Parascapanodon and Scapanodon were once thought to be distinct genera, but are now considered to be junior synonyms of Titanosuchus.[3]
See also edit
References edit
- ^ "Palaeos Vertebrates: Therapsida: Tapinocephalia".
- ^ Palmer, D., ed. (1999). The Marshall Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals. London: Marshall Editions. p. 189. ISBN 1-84028-152-9.
- ^ Boonstra, L. D., 1969, The fauna of the Tapinocephalus zone (Beaufort beds of the Karoo): Annals of the South African Museum, v. 56, part 1, p. 1-73.
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