Alligator mefferdi explained

Alligator mefferdi is an extinct species of alligator described by Charles Craig Mook. They lived in the Miocene period, and their range was principally in what is now Nebraska, United States.[1] [2] The type specimen was discovered in the Ash Hollow Formation at Ash Hollow State Historical Park.[1]

Classification

A. mefferdi is a member of the subfamily Alligatorinae, within the larger family Alligatoridae. Phylogenetic studies have found A. mefferdi to be most closely related to the living American alligator,[3] as shown in the cladogram below:[4] [5]

Measurements

The average measurements for the skull of A. mefferdi are 298 x 170 millimeters. Based on the length, the estimated body mass was 34.6 kg.[1]

Notes and References

  1. https://paleobiodb.org/classic/checkTaxonInfo?taxon_no=96549
  2. Web site: Alligators may not have changed much in 8 million years. 2020-12-26. Mashable UK.
  3. Michael S. Y. Lee . Adam M. Yates . 27 June 2018 . Tip-dating and homoplasy: reconciling the shallow molecular divergences of modern gharials with their long fossil . . 285 . 1881 . 10.1098/rspb.2018.1071 . 30051855 . 6030529 . free.
  4. Hastings . A. K. . Bloch . J. I. . Jaramillo . C. A. . Rincon . A. F. . MacFadden . B. J. . Systematics and biogeography of crocodylians from the Miocene of Panama . 10.1080/02724634.2012.713814 . Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology . 33 . 2 . 239 . 2013 . 2013JVPal..33..239H . 83972694 . free .
  5. Brochu . C. A. . 10.1111/j.1096-3642.2011.00716.x . Phylogenetic relationships of Necrosuchus ionensis Simpson, 1937 and the early history of caimanines . Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society . 163 . S228–S256 . 2011 . free .

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