Fossilized remains from a new crocodile-like species were unearthed in Tanzania. The archosaur, which lived 240 million years ago, featured "knife-like teeth" and a "powerful jaw."
Mambawakale ruhuhu: Crocodile-Like Archosaur
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - DECEMBER 22: Rex, one of the world's biggest crocodiles at around 5m long and 700kg, is unveiled to the public in his new Kakadu-themed home, at Sydney Wildlife World on December 22, 2009 in Sydney, Australia. The new resident is the star of "The Last Living Dinosaur" exhibit following his relocation from Darwin.
The paleontologists at the University of Birmingham discovered the fossilized remains of the archosaur, also known as Mambawakale ruhuhu. It could grow up to 16 feet long.
The archosaur's scientific name means "ancient crocodile from the Ruhuhu Basin." It was described through an official language of East Africa. The basin is located in the region of Kiswahili.
Pieces of the Mambawakale ruhuhu fossils were examined through the efforts of the University of Birmingham paleontology experts, led by Richard Butler along with his colleagues.
Butler said in a DailyMail report that the Mambawakale ruhuhu "would have been a very large and pretty terrifying predator." It is among the largest predators that existed in the Middle Triassic. The archosaur walked with its four legs and sported a long tail.
The archosaur fossils were first excavated in 1963 from the Ruhuhu Basin site. The first study of the creature was carried out in a joint expedition by the British Museum (Natural History) and the University of London.
Parts of the Mambawakale ruhuhu were reposited in museums in the United Kingdom (Natural History Museum, London & University Museum of Zoology, Cambridge), South Africa (Iziko South African Museum, Cape Town), and Germany (Institut für Geologie und Paläontologie, Tübingen; Bayerische Staatssammlung für Paläontologie und Geologie, Munich).
The discovery of the beast's remains was conducted just two years after Tanzania separated from Britain and gained its independence.
The archosaur fossil contains a skull that scales to 2.5 feet in length, a jawbone, and a complete left hand. The remains were located and recovered with the help of Tanzanian and Zambian individuals who remained anonymous in the associated field reports. They collected the fossils from different localities and were employed in building roads for the passage of expedition vehicles to transport the fossils.
Pallisteria angustimentum Gets a New Name
The specimen was initially called "Pallisteria angustimentum" by English palaeontologist Alan Charig. The genus name was after his friend, geologist John Weaver Pallister, while the species was based on the Latin word "narrow chin."
Pallisteria angustimentum was never formalized since Charig was not able to detail the species in a scientific paper. Since its discovery, the first name of the archosaur was barely used in references and published studies.
Butler and his team picked a new name for the beast in the latest paper under the Kiswahili language to honor the unnamed individuals who contributed to the success of the 1963 expedition.
Butler emphasized that the key results of their research serve as the formal recognition of the Mambawakale ruhuhu as a new species.
The study's full findings were published in the Royal Society Open Science.
RELATED ARTICLE: Diplodocid Dinosaur Remains in Montana Shows Signs of 150 Million-Year-Old Respiratory Infection
Check out more news and information on Paleontology in Science Times.
