Paralligator Explained

Paralligator is an extinct genus of neosuchian crocodylomorph that lived during the Late Cretaceous (Cenomanian-Maastrichtian) period in what is now the Bayan Shireh and Nemegt formations of Mongolia, approximately 96 million to 70 million years ago. P. gradilifrons reached up to in length.^{[1] [2]}

Taxonomy

Two species are recognized:

Misassigned species

"Paralligator" sungaricus, described from the Early Cretaceous Nenjiang Formation of Jilin Province, China, is based on postcranial remains consisting of a few presacral vertebrae, dorsal osteoderms, a partial left femur, and the proximal part of a left tibia and fibula.^{[3] [4]} However, the type material is too fragmentary to be considered diagnostic, and the species is a nomen dubium. Turner (2015) also referred P. ancestralis a junior subjective synonym of P. gradilifrons.

Notes and References

1. Book: Storrs, G. W. . The Age of Dinosaurs in Russia and Mongolia . Efimov, M. B. . Cambridge University Press . 2000 . Michael J. Benton . 402–419 . Mesozoic crocodyliforms of north-central Eurasia . Mikhail A. Shishkin . David M. Unwin . Evgenii N. Kurochkin.
2. Turner . Alan H. . 2015-02-25 . A Review of Shamosuchus and Paralligator (Crocodyliformes, Neosuchia) from the Cretaceous of Asia . PLOS ONE . 10 . 2 . e0118116 . 10.1371/journal.pone.0118116 . 1932-6203 . 4340866 . 25714338 . 2015PLoSO..1018116T . free .
3. Sun . A.-L. . 1958 . A new species of Paralligator from Sungarian Plain. . Vertebrata PalAsiatica . 2 . 4 . 277–280.
4. Wu . X.-C. . Cheng, Z.-W. . Russell, A. P. . 2001 . Cranial anatomy of a new crocodyliform (Archosauria: Crocodylomorpha) from the Lower Cretaceous of Song-Liao Plain, northeastern China . Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences . 38 . 12 . 1653–1663 . 10.1139/cjes-38-12-1653.