Kaprosuchus
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Kaprosuchus Temporal range: Late Cretaceous, 95 Ma |
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| Skull of K. saharicus, scale bar equals 10 cm | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Family: | †Mahajangasuchidae |
| Genus: |
†Kaprosuchus Sereno and Larsson, 2009 |
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Kaprosuchus is an extinct genus of mahajangasuchid crocodyliform. It is known from a single nearly complete skull collected from the Upper Cretaceous Echkar Formation of Niger. The name means "boar crocodile" from the Greek κάπρος, kapros ("boar") and σοῦχος, souchos ("crocodile") in reference to its unusually large caniniform teeth which resemble those of a boar. It has been nicknamed "BoarCroc" by Paul Sereno and Hans Larsson, who first described the genus in a monograph published in ZooKeys in 2009 along with other Saharan crocodyliformes such as Anatosuchus and Laganosuchus. The type species is K. saharicus.
Kaprosuchus is known from a nearly complete skull 507 mm in length in which the lower jaw measured 603 mm long, whilst the entire animal is originally estimated to have been around 6 metres (19.7 ft) in length, but later comparisons to similar crocodiles suggest a total estimated body length approximately 3.3 metres (10.8 ft). It possesses three sets of tusk-like caniniform teeth that project above and below the skull, one of which in the lower jaw fits into notches in upper jaw. This type of dentition is not seen in any other known crocodyliform. Another unique characteristic of Kaprosuchus is the presence of large, rugose horns formed from the squamosal and parietal bones that project posteriorly from the skull. Smaller projections are also seen in the closely related Mahajangasuchus.
The snout of Kaprosuchus shows generalized proportions and the naris is positioned dorsally. In Kaprosuchus many teeth are hypertrophied and labiolingually (laterally) compressed, unlike those of crocodyliforms with similarly shallow snouts, which are usually subconical and of moderate length. Another difference between the skull of Kaprosuchus and those of crocodyliforms that also possess dorsoventrally compressed snouts is the great depth of the posterior portion of the skull.
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