Orthosuchus
| Orthosuchus Temporal range: Hettangian-Sinemurian | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Clade: | Archosauria |
| Clade: | Pseudosuchia |
| Clade: | Crocodylomorpha |
| Family: | †Protosuchidae |
| Genus: | †Orthosuchus Nash, 1968 |
| Species | |
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Orthosuchus (meaning "straight crocodile") is an extinct genus of crocodyliform that lived during the Early Jurassic, about 196 million years ago. It was first discovered in 1963 in the Red Beds Formation in the Qacha's Nek Province of Lesotho, southern Africa. The characteristics showed on its postcranial skeleton and the skull indicated that it is a crocodyliform. The finding is significant since some of the characteristics found on this specimen were believed to be absent until Jurassic.