Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, ICTA-ICP, Edifici Z, C/ de Les Columnes S/N. Campus Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Spain.
Museu de La Conca Dellà, c/Museu 4, 25650, Isona, Lleida, Spain.
Sci Rep. 2020 Sep 17;10(1):15293. doi: 10.1038/s41598-020-71975-y.
Sebecosuchia was a group of highly specialized cursorial crocodyliforms that diversified during the Cretaceous and persist until the end of the Miocene. Their unique combination of cranial and post-cranial features indicates that they were active terrestrial predators that occupied the apex of the Late Cretaceous terrestrial ecosystems, even competing with theropod dinosaurs. Here, we report the discovery of the earliest sebecid worldwide, and the first from Eurasia, Ogresuchus furatus gen. et sp. nov., based on a semi-articulate specimen located in a titanosaurian sauropod nesting ground. The new taxon challenges current biogeographical models about the early dispersal and radiation of sebecid crocodylomorphs, and suggests an origin of the group much earlier than previously expected. Moreover, the new taxon suggests a potential convergent evolution between linages geographically isolated. Taphonomic evidences suggest that Ogresuchus died almost in the same place where fossilized, in a dinosaur nesting area. Biometric and morphologic observations lead to speculate that Ogresuchus could easily predate on sauropod hatchlings.
塞贝鳄形超目是一类高度特化的似鳄类鳄形超目动物，它们在白垩纪多样化，并一直延续到中新世末期。它们独特的头颅骨和后躯骨骼特征表明，它们是活跃的陆地捕食者，占据了晚白垩世陆地生态系统的顶端，甚至与兽脚亚目恐龙竞争。在这里，我们报告了世界上最早的塞贝鳄形超目动物的发现，也是第一个来自欧亚大陆的塞贝鳄形超目动物，即 Ogresuchus furatus gen. et sp. nov.，它基于一个位于泰坦巨龙类蜥脚类恐龙筑巢地的半关节标本。这个新分类单元挑战了关于塞贝鳄形超目动物早期扩散和辐射的当前生物地理模型，并表明该类群的起源比之前预期的要早得多。此外，这个新分类单元表明了地理上隔离的谱系之间存在潜在的趋同进化。埋藏学证据表明，Ogresuchus 几乎是在恐龙筑巢区的同一地点死亡并被石化的。生物测量学和形态学观察表明，Ogresuchus 可能很容易捕食蜥脚类恐龙的幼仔。
