Wild Safari Prehistoric World Sarcosuchus

Our thanks to Amy who sent into Everything Dinosaur some beautiful photographs of her recently acquired Wild Safari Prehistoric World Sarcosuchus model.  It looks like the recent good weather was taken advantage of so that the Sarcosuchus could patrol outside.  These are wonderful well-composed photographs, especially the ones of the Sarcosuchus in the water.

The Wild Safari Prehistoric World Sarcosuchus Ready to Ambush

Picture credit: Amy

Sarcosuchus

The Sarcosuchus certainly looks very much at home in the water.  It looks like it is ready to ambush any unwary dinosaur that decides to take a drink.  Only distantly related to extant crocodylians, very little was known about this giant predator until an almost complete skull was unearthed in Niger by a French research team (1964).  A series of expeditions to the same region of Africa led by the famous American palaeontologist Paul Sereno in the mid 1990’s resulted in the discovery of six new specimens and it was from these remains that the body plan of this crocodyliform was reconstructed.

It is Likely that Sarcosuchus was an Ambusher of Animals that Ventured to Close to the Water

Picture credit: Amy

Sarcosuchus Going for a Swim

The Sarcosuchus model looks quite at home in Amy’s garden pond.  The model of “flesh crocodile” measures an impressive 26.5 centimetres long and it is one of the largest prehistoric animal models introduced this year by Safari Ltd.  Only the Edmontosaurus replica surpasses it in size.  In keeping with the scientific paper published in 2001 by Sereno et al when the fossilised specimens found during the 1990s were formally described, Amy has chosen to depict her Sarcosuchus as a semi-aquatic animal.  It would have basked on the riverbank and occasionally moved around on land, but it probably did not stray too far from water.

To view the Wild Safari Prehistoric World range of models: Wild Safari Prehistoric World Models and Figures.

Sarcosuchus Probably Did Not Stray Far from Water

Picture credit: Amy

A Beautifully Painted Crocodyliform

The design team at Safari Ltd studied the scales and markings on living crocodiles in order to create their detailed prehistoric crocodile model.  The photograph (above), shows the different sized scales on the replica, smaller rounded scales on the flanks with larger, rectangular scales on the legs and the underside of the animal.  The parallel rows of osteoderms that run down from the neck to the tail have been skilfully recreated and the model demonstrates the bulbous upper jaw tip first identified in that almost complete fossil skull found in the Gadoufaoua region of northern Niger in 1964.

A Close View of the Head of the Wild Safari Prehistoric World Sarcosuchus Model

Picture credit: Amy

Fossils from Africa and Also from Brazil

Two species of Sarcosuchus have been scientifically described.  Fossils from Africa associated with Lower Cretaceous outcrops of the Elrhaz Formation have been ascribed to S. imperator, whereas, the much older strata from the Ihas Group outcropping in north-eastern Brazil have yielded specimens that have been ascribed to the species S. hartti.  The holotype material associated with S. hartti resides at the London Natural History Museum, but given the huge temporal range which spans the African and Brazilian material, it is very likely that other Sarcosuchus species and closely related genera will be identified.

Wild Safari Prehistoric World Sarcosuchus

Picture credit: Amy

A spokesperson from Everything Dinosaur commented:

“Our thanks to Amy for sending into us some splendid and carefully composed photographs of her Sarcosuchus model.”

The Everything Dinosaur website: Everything Dinosaur.

To view the Sarcosuchus replica and the rest of the models in the Safari Ltd range: Wild Safari Prehistoric World models and figures.