Scientists Discover Upright-Walking Crocodile Remains from Triassic Era in US

An international group of paleontologists announced the discovery of fossil remains of a crocodile species from the Triassic era in the United States that resembled two-legged predatory dinosaurs from later geological periods.

This crocodile walked on two legs and lacked teeth, possessing instead a beak-like structure, according to a press release from the Natural History Museum in Los Angeles.

Professor Alan Turner from Stony Brook University in the United States stated, "Many new evolutionary strategies emerged during the Triassic period, which later gave rise to numerous existing animals, birds, and extinct dinosaurs, all of which were successful. In this context, the unique evolutionary strategy of these ancient crocodiles (upright walking) was later successfully adopted by many dinosaurs and birds."

Fossil Discovery in New Mexico

Professor Turner and his colleagues found the remains of this ancient reptile, named Labrujasuchus expectatus, during excavations at the Ranch of Ghosts, one of the most famous Triassic deposits in New Mexico. In the mid-20th century, a mass grave of Coelophysis, the earliest fast-moving bipedal predatory dinosaur, was discovered at this site.

Significance of the Bipedal Crocodile

Paleontologists determined that a similar mode of locomotion was characteristic of these unusual two-legged crocodiles that lived in what is now the southern United States approximately 212 million years ago at the end of the Triassic period. Anatomical features of these reptiles, including the structure of their shoulder and leg bones, indicate that they represent the "missing link" in the evolution of bipedal reptiles from the Shuvosauridae family.

According to the researchers, the lack of significant anatomical differences between Labrujasuchus expectatus and other shuvosaurid crocodiles suggests a relatively slow pace of evolution. This also implies the existence of many other bipedal crocodile species from the Triassic period that have yet to be discovered by scientists.