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Deinosuchus

Say it: DIE-no-SOO-kus

Name means: “terrible crocodile”1

Ate: MeatPrehistoric legendsLate CretaceousNot a dinosaur, but a prehistoric legend

Deinosuchus was a giant crocodile-like reptile that lived during the Late Cretaceous, about 82 to 73 million years ago. It was one of the biggest crocodilian predators ever, growing longer than a school bus! Even though it looked like a crocodile, it was actually more closely related to alligators.1

This one is not a dinosaur, but it is one of the most famous animals of prehistoric times, so it gets a place in Dino Wiki too.

Lived

84 to 72 million years ago5

Late Cretaceous

Fossils found in

Fossils have been found in 12 U.S. states, including Texas, Montana, Alabama, and New Jersey, as well as in northern Mexico.1 5

Food

Meat2 1

Length

9 to 10 m2

some specimens may have approached 10 m

Weight

2.5 tonnes to 5 tonnes3

estimate

When did it live?

Triassic

Jurassic

Cretaceous

252 million years ago20114566, the asteroid

How big was it?

How long was it?

How heavy was it?

as heavy as 3 cars

as long as 2 cars parked in a rowas long as 56 bananas end to endabout as heavy as an elephantas heavy as 1000 watermelons

How big was Deinosuchus compared to YOU?

Just maths in your browser. Nothing is saved or sent anywhere.

cool stuff

Fun facts

Deinosuchus could grow over 9 meters (30 feet) long, making it one of the largest crocodilian relatives ever.1

Its back was covered in thick, round bony plates called osteoderms, which acted like armor.1

Scientists think Deinosuchus may have lived for up to 50 years, growing slowly but for a very long time.1

Deinosuchus lived on both sides of the Western Interior Seaway, a huge sea that split North America in two during the Cretaceous.1

Bite marks on dinosaur bones show that Deinosuchus attacked and ate large dinosaurs.2

The first Deinosuchus fossils were found in North Carolina in the 1850s, but the animal was not named until 1909.1

Deinosuchus had a longer skull than modern crocodiles and alligators, and its teeth were built for crushing.1

AI-made picture of Deinosuchus — An AI-made picture of how Deinosuchus might have looked, made by a computer from what scientists know. It is a guess: the real animal may have looked different, and nobody knows its true colours.

you asked

Most asked questions about Deinosuchus

?Was Deinosuchus a dinosaur?

No, Deinosuchus was not a dinosaur. It was a giant crocodile-like reptile, more closely related to alligators.1

?How big was Deinosuchus?

The largest Deinosuchus could grow over 9 meters (30 feet) long, longer than a school bus. Some specimens may have approached 10 meters.1 2

?Could Deinosuchus eat dinosaurs?

Yes, bite marks on dinosaur bones show that Deinosuchus attacked and ate large dinosaurs. It was an apex predator.1 2

?When did Deinosuchus live?

Deinosuchus lived during the Late Cretaceous, about 82 to 73 million years ago.1

?Where was Deinosuchus found?

Deinosuchus fossils have been found in 12 U.S. states, including Texas, Montana, and along the East Coast, as well as in northern Mexico.1

?How long did Deinosuchus live?

Scientists think Deinosuchus may have lived for up to 50 years, growing slowly but for a very long time.1

?What did Deinosuchus eat?

Deinosuchus probably ate large dinosaurs, sea turtles, fish, and other aquatic and terrestrial prey. It was an opportunistic predator.1

?Did Deinosuchus have armor?

Yes, its back was covered with thick, round bony plates called osteoderms, which acted like armor.1

?Is Deinosuchus related to alligators?

Yes, Deinosuchus was more closely related to alligators than to crocodiles, though some scientists think it was a stem-group crocodilian.1 4

?How fast could Deinosuchus run?

Nobody knows for sure, but like modern crocodilians, it was probably a slow runner on land and a fast ambush predator in water.1

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Myth buster

Myth: Deinosuchus is often thought to be a dinosaur because of its huge size and scary name.

Truth: Deinosuchus was not a dinosaur. It was a giant relative of alligators and crocodiles, called a crocodylian.1

For dino experts

Scientific name: Deinosuchus
Named by: Holland 19095
Group: Prehistoric legends
Family / clade: Alligatoroidea5
Classification: Reptilia > Crocodylia > Alligatoroidea5
Age of the rocks: 84 to 72 million years (Campanian)5
Rock formations: Aguja, Judith River, Mooreville5
Countries: USA, Mexico5
Fossil records: 19 in the Paleobiology Database5
Discovery: The first Deinosuchus fossils were found in North Carolina in the 1850s, but the genus was named in 1909 by William Holland based on fossils from Montana. Later, in the 1940s, more complete remains were found in Texas by an American Museum of Natural History expedition led by Barnum Brown and Roland Bird.1 2
Still debated: Scientists still debate whether Deinosuchus from eastern and western North America were different species or just one species that lived across a wide area.2

Where the facts come from

Deinosuchus (en.wikipedia.org)
Full article: A systematic review of the giant alligatoroid Deinosuchus from the Campanian of North America and its implications for the relationships at the root of Crocodylia (tandfonline.com)
How the ‘terror crocodile’ grew so big | Nature (nature.com)
Expanded phylogeny elucidates Deinosuchus relationships, crocodylian osmoregulation and body-size evolution (pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov)
Deinosuchus in The Paleobiology Database (CC BY 4.0): age, places, rock formations, classification.

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