Ancient 10-Meter-Long Crocodile Discovered

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Comparison among Machimosaurus skulls. (A) M. buffetauti, (B) M. mosae (C) M. hugii, (D) M. rex. Reconstruction of M. rex body based on preserved elements (E). F. Fanti et al., 2016 Cretaceous Research

Lower Cretaceous sediments from an unexplored area of Tunisia have yielded the fossilized remains of a 10-meter-long marine crocodile – the largest ocean-dwelling croc ever discovered. Researchers named the new extinct species Machimosaurus rex, and it’s described in Cretaceous Research this week.