Suchosaurus

Suchosaurus
Temporal range: Early Cretaceous (Valanginian to Aptian), 139.8–122.46 Ma
Holotype tooth of S. cultridens seen from two angles
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Clade: Dinosauria
Clade: Saurischia
Clade: Theropoda
Family: Spinosauridae
Subfamily: Baryonychinae
Genus: Suchosaurus
Owen, 1841
Type species
Suchosaurus cultridens
Owen, 1841
Species
  • S. cultridens Owen, 1841 (type)
  • S. girardi Sauvage, 1897
Synonyms

Suchosaurus (meaning "crocodile lizard") is a spinosaurid dinosaur from Cretaceous England and Portugal, originally believed to be a genus of crocodile. The type material, consisting of teeth, was used by British palaeontologist Richard Owen to name the species S. cultridens in 1841. Later in 1897, French palaeontologist Henri-Émile Sauvage named a second species, S. girardi, based on two fragments from the mandible and one tooth discovered in Portugal. Suchosaurus is possibly a senior synonym of the contemporary spinosaurid Baryonyx, but is usually considered a dubious name due to the paucity of its remains, and is considered an indeterminate baryonychine. In the Wadhurst Clay Formation of what is now southern England, Suchosaurus lived alongside other dinosaurs, as well as plesiosaurs, mammals, and crocodyliforms.