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Desmatosuchus

author: Walter B. Myers/Novapix

reference: t-din01-11003

Image Size 300 DPI: 42 * 26 cm

15-foot-long, 750 pound aetosaurian archosaurs of the genus Desmatosuchus search for edible roots amidst cycads and ferns 230 million years ago in what is today Texas. Armored plates and spikes, with some spikes up to 18 inches long, helped protect this otherwise vulnerable crocodile-like herbivore from the many terrestrial predators of the period including rauisuchian archosaurs like Postosuchus. Desmatosuchus is also notable for its unusual pig-like head and shovel-like snout which were likely well-suited for uprooting small plants.

Keywords for this photo:

2012 - ANIMAL - DESMATOSUCHUS - EARTH - FAUNA - HISTORY OF EARTH - ILLUSTRATION - MESOZOIC - REPTILE - TRIASSIC -