Before dinosaurs, the giant ‘Carolina Butcher’ was a North American terror
Source: Washington Post
Before dinosaurs, the giant ‘Carolina Butcher’ was a North American terror
By Rachel Feltman March 19
A new species found in North Carolina is one of the oldest and largest crocodile relatives ever known.
Back before dinosaurs were the big bads of our continent, Carnufex carolinensis ruled the scene. At nine feet long and walking on its hind legs, this croc would have been a fierce predator 230 million years ago. Researchers described the species (which translates to "Carolina Butcher," which is awesome) for the first time Thursday in Scientific Reports.
Its bones may have been found in a quarry, but back in the Butcher's day North Carolina was a lush, warm, wet region just beginning to pull away from the supercontinent of Pangea. And in that region, it seems, an upright crocodile roamed.
The Carnufex carolinensis fossil was actually discovered a decade ago, but its bones have been sitting in the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences ever since.
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Read more: http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/speaking-of-science/wp/2015/03/19/before-dinosaurs-the-giant-carolina-butcher-was-a-north-american-terror/
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