Hesperosuchus

Name meaning:

Name meaning: “Western crocodile.”

Period of life:

227–237 million years ago

Period:

Triassic period

Habitat:

Floodplains

Taxonomy:

Archosaurs

Countries:

Triassic period Hesperosuchus | 3D Dinopedia

Placodus

Saurosuchus

Hesperosuchus (227–237 million years ago)

Hesperosuchus (Hesperosuchus agilis) is an extinct genus of crocodylomorphs that lived around 230 million years ago and is known from a single species. Its fossils were found in Upper Triassic (Carnian) deposits of Arizona and New Mexico. When paleontologists first examined its skull and lightweight, “open” skeleton, they initially believed it might be an ancestor of large predatory dinosaurs. Only later did it become clear that Hesperosuchus belonged not to the dinosaur branch, but to the crocodilian branch of archosaurs—making it one of the earliest crocodylomorphs.

In size, Hesperosuchus was comparable to a large dog: 1.2–1.5 meters long, with a slender, lightweight body and a long balancing tail. Its hind limbs were longer and more powerful than the forelimbs, and they stood upright beneath the body rather than sticking out to the sides as in modern crocodiles. It likely ran on all fours, but very quickly and springily—like a small sprinter. Lightweight bones helped reduce body mass, while the tail maintained balance as the animal chased prey or fled from larger predators.

The skull of Hesperosuchus was relatively large for its body size, with a narrow snout and sharp, serrated teeth. This is a classic “predator toolkit”: teeth suited for grabbing and tearing flesh. Hesperosuchus likely hunted small vertebrates—lizards, the young of other reptiles, and possibly small amphibians.

It lived on land but not far from water. In the Late Triassic, the region that is now northern Arizona was full of rivers, lakes, and swampy lowlands. Large herbivores grazed there, and many kinds of animals flourished—meaning plenty of prey. Hesperosuchus ran along firm ground near riverbanks like a swift terrestrial predator associated with water, but not the “aquatic hunter” we imagine when thinking of its distant modern relatives.

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