Bizarre ‘witch croc’ that looks just like a dinosaur discovered in New Mexico
BBC Wildlife Magazine • • general
Key Points:
- Researchers from the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County discovered Labrujasuchus expectatus, a bizarre, bipedal, toothless crocodile relative from the Triassic Period, at Ghost Ranch, New Mexico.
- Labrujasuchus, nicknamed ‘witch croc,’ resembles bipedal ornithomimosaur dinosaurs with a toothless beak but belongs to the crocodile lineage, illustrating convergent evolution between crocodile relatives and dinosaurs.
- This species is the fifth shuvosaur identified, filling an evolutionary gap between earlier finds and confirming predictions about undiscovered species from the Triassic era.
- The discovery highlights the significance of the Ghost Ranch site, known for its rich Triassic fossil record, including the famous Coelophysis dinosaur, and its cultural impact as a filming location for major movies.
- The research underscores how diverse body plans evolved in prehistoric reptiles, with bipedalism emerging independently in both crocodile relatives and dinosaurs as a successful survival strategy.