| Samsarasuchus Temporal range: Early Triassic (Induan),
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|---|---|
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Clade: | Archosauromorpha |
| Clade: | Archosauriformes |
| Family: | †Proterosuchidae |
| Subfamily: | †Chasmatosuchinae |
| Genus: | †Samsarasuchus Ezcurra et al., 2023 |
| Species: | †S. pamelae
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| Binomial name | |
| †Samsarasuchus pamelae Ezcurra et al., 2023
| |
Samsarasuchus is an extinct genus of archosauriform reptile from the Early Triassic of India. This genus has one known species, Samsarasuchus pamelae.[1][2][3] Samsarasuchus lived a few million years after the Permian-Triassic extinction, the largest known mass extinction event. It was a member of the Proterosuchidae, a group of successful crocodile-like reptiles that survived the extinction event and were among the earliest successful archosauromorphs.[1]
Samsarasuchus is known from several vertebrae recovered from the Panchet Formation of West Bengal, India. The formation has been dated to the Induan, the earliest stage of the Triassic period. It was classified in the Chasmatosuchinae, a subfamily of proterosuchids that contains a majority of genera in the family, including the Permian Archosaurus. It is the only valid proterosuchid from India; Ankistrodon, another proterosuchid previously described from the Panchet Formation, is considered a nomen dubium due to its non-diagnostic remains.[1]
The genus name Samsarasuchus references saṃsāra, the eternal cycle of death and rebirth in Indian religions, referring to the recovery of global ecosystems after the Permian-Triassic extinction event. The species name honors paleontologist Pamela Lamplugh Robinson.[1]
- ^ a b c d Ezcurra, Martín D.; Bandyopadhyay, Saswati; Sengupta, Dhurjati P.; Sen, Kasturi; Sennikov, Andrey G.; Sookias, Roland B.; Nesbitt, Sterling J.; Butler, Richard J. (25 October 2023). "A new archosauriform species from the Panchet Formation of India and the diversification of Proterosuchidae after the end-Permian mass extinction". Royal Society Open Science. 10 (10). doi:10.1098/rsos.230387. ISSN 2054-5703. PMC 10598453. PMID 37885992.
- ^ Yirka, Bob; Phys.org. "New proterosuchid species from 250 million years ago found in India". phys.org. Retrieved 2023-10-31.
- ^ Science, Aristos Georgiou; Reporter, Health (2023-10-24). "New species of croc-like creature from 250 million years ago discovered". Newsweek. Retrieved 2023-10-31.