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Teratosaurus Temporal range: Late Triassic, 216–204 Ma PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N
Right maxilla of the holotype
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Clade:	Archosauria
Clade:	Pseudosuchia
Family:	†Rauisuchidae
Genus:	†Teratosaurus Meyer, 1861
Type species
†Teratosaurus suevicus Meyer, 1861

Teratosaurus is a genus of rauisuchians known from the Triassic Stubensandstein (Löwenstein Formation - Norian stage) of Germany. It is estimated to be 6.2 meters (20.35 ft) long.

Discovery

In 1860, Sixt Friedrich Jakob von Kapff at the Heslacher Wand near Stuttgart discovered the upper jaw bone of a large reptile. The type specimen, which Hermann von Meyer declared to be distinct from Belodon, was described and named by the latter as the type species Teratosaurus suevicus. The generic name is derived from Greek τέρας, teras, " monster" and sauros, "lizard". The specific name refers to Suevia. The holotype, BMNH 38646, was found in the Mittlerer Stubensandstein. It consists of a 245 millimetres long right maxilla with six large, up to five centimetres long, teeth, erroneously interpreted by Meyer as the left maxilla. It indicates a body length of about six metres.

Later authors, such as Kapff himself, von Huene, Osborn, and Edwin H. Colbert, incorrectly attributed postcrania of the sauropodomorph dinosaur Efraasia to this species or genus and, as a result, it was thought to be a representative of a presumed group of carnivorous Prosauropoda or, alternatively, a very primitive theropod. Following this lead, many popular books in the 20th century depicted "teratosaurs" as the earliest sort of large-bodied meat-eating dinosaur, walking on two legs and preying on the prosauropods of its day. It was thought by many to be a Triassic ancestor to the "carnosaurs" of the Jurassic. Sauropodomorph material was described as Teratosaurus species such as Teratosaurus minor (now Efraasia) and Teratosaurus trossingensis.

In 1985 and 1986, Peter Galton and Michael Benton independently showed that Teratosaurus is actually a rauisuchian, a type of non-dinosaurian large predatory archosaur, many of which walked on all fours, and lived alongside dinosaurs during the Late Triassic.

Apart from the holotype and the sauropodomorph fossils, teeth probably belonging to various carnivorous archosaurs were named as Teratosaurus species. These included Teratosaurus lloydi, a renaming of Cladeiodon lloydi (Owen 1841) by Huene in 1908, and Teratosaurus bengalensis. Teratosaurus silesiacus, described in 2005 by Tomasz Sulej on the basis of a left maxilla, was transferred to the genus Polonosuchus by Brussatte et al. in 2009.

References

1. C. E. H. von Meyer. 1861. "Reptilien aus dem Stubensandstein des oberen Keupers", Palaeontographica 7: 253-346
2. ^ Benton, M.J. (1986). "The late Triassic reptile Teratosaurus - a rauisuchian, not a dinosaur". Palaeontology 29: 293-301.
3. D. Dixon, B. Cox, R.J.G. Savage & B. Gardiner, 1988, Macmillan Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals: A Visual Who's Who of Prehistoric Life, Macmillan pp 312
4. F. v. Huene, 1908, Die Dinosaurier der Europäischen Triasformation mit berücksichtigung der Ausseuropäischen vorkommnisse. Geologische und Palaeontologische Abhandlungen Suppl. 1(1): 1-419
5. Galton, P. M. (1985). "The poposaurid thecodontian Teratosaurus suevicus Meyer, plus referred specimens mostly based on prosauropod dinosaurs". Stuttgarter Beiträge zur Naturkunde, B, 116: 1-29.
6. F. v. Huene. 1908. "Eine Zusammenstellung über die englische Trias und das Alter ihrer Fossilien". Zentralblatt für Mineralogie, Geologie und Paläontologie 1908: 9-17
7. H.C. Das-Gupta. 1928. "Batrachian and reptilian remains found in the Panchet Beds at Deoli, Bengal". Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal, New Series 14(13): 473-479
8. Sulej, T. (2005). "A new rauisuchian reptile (Diapsida: Archosauria) from the Late Triassic of Poland." Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, 25(1):78-86.
9. Brusatte, Stephen L.; Butler, Richard J.; Sulej, Tomasz; Niedźwiedzki, Grzegorz (2009). "The taxonomy and anatomy of rauisuchian archosaurs from the Late Triassic of Germany and Poland". Acta Palaeontologica Polonica. 54 (2): 221–230. doi:10.4202/app.2008.0065. hdl:20.500.11820/985f419d-0f3c-42e4-b4bf-eaba220e20f8.

• On the Classification of the Dinosauria with Observations on the Dinosauria of the Trias - Quarterly Journal of the Geological Society (1870) Scientific Memoirs III

External links

• Palaeos Mesozoic - Norian
• Rauisuchia Translation and Pronunciation Guide by Ben Creisler

v t e Pseudosuchia
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Sauropsida Clade: Archosauria Sauropsida see Sauropsida Archosauromorpha see Archosauromorpha Pseudosuchia see below↓
Pseudosuchia Pseudosuchia †Dasygnathoides †Nundasuchus †Phytosauria? †Ornithosuchidae Aenigmaspina? Dynamosuchus Ornithosuchus Riojasuchus Venaticosuchus Suchia †Heteropelta? †Koilamasuchus? †Mandasuchus †Nundasuchus? †Ticinosuchus †Erpetosuchidae Archeopelta? Dyoplax? Erpetosuchus Pagosvenator Parringtonia Tarjadia †Aetosauriformes Acaenasuchus Euscolosuchus Revueltosaurus Aetosauria see Aetosauria †Gracilisuchidae Gracilisuchus Maehary? Parvosuchus Turfanosuchus Yonghesuchus Paracrocodylomorpha see below↓
Paracrocodylomorpha Paracrocodylomorpha †Mambawakale †Poposauroidea Benggwigwishingasuchus Lotosaurus Schultzsuchus? Qianosuchus Ctenosauriscidae Arizonasaurus Bromsgroveia Bystrowisuchus Ctenosauriscus Hypselorhachis Tsylmosuchus? Xilousuchus Poposauridae Dolichobrachium Poposaurus Shuvosauridae Effigia Shuvosaurus Sillosuchus Loricata †Apatosuchus †Arganasuchus †Batrachotomus †Dagasuchus †Decuriasuchus †Etjosuchus †Fasolasuchus †Heptasuchus †Heteropelta? †Incertovenator? †Luperosuchus †Mandasuchus? †Prestosuchus †Procerosuchus †Saurosuchus †Stagonosuchus †Youngosuchus †Rauisuchidae Arganasuchus? Energosuchus? Jushatyria? Polonosuchus Postosuchus Procerosuchus? Rauisuchus Scolotosuchus Scythosuchus? Teratosaurus Tikisuchus? Vivaron Vjushkovisaurus? Vytshegdosuchus? Crocodylomorpha see below↓
Crocodylomorpha Crocodylomorpha †Carnufex †Dibothrosuchus †Dromicosuchus †Hesperosuchus †Heteropelta? †Junggarsuchus †Kayentasuchus †Parrishia †Phyllodontosuchus †Pseudhesperosuchus †Redondavenator †Sphenosuchus †Syntomiprosopus? †Trialestes †Saltoposuchidae Litargosuchus Saltoposuchus Terrestrisuchus †Hallopodidae Almadasuchus Hallopus Macelognathus †Thalattosuchia see Thalattosuchia Crocodyliformes †Entradasuchus †Eopneumatosuchus †Kemkemia †Microchampsa †Platyognathus †Stegomosuchus †Tagarosuchus †Protosuchidae Coloradisuchus Dianosuchus Edentosuchus Erythrochampsa Hemiprotosuchus Hoplosuchus Orthosuchus? Pedeticosaurus? Protosuchus †Notochampsidae Notochampsa Orthosuchus? †Gobiosuchidae Cassissuchus Gobiosuchus Lisboasaurus? Zaraasuchus Mesoeucrocodylia †Dianchungosaurus †Hsisosuchus †Induszalim †Lusitanisuchus †Neuquensuchus †Pachycheilosuchus? †Titanochampsa †Thalattosuchia? †Shartegosuchoidea Hadongsuchus Shantungosuchus Sichuanosuchus Zosuchus Shartegosuchidae Adzhosuchus Fruitachampsa Kyasuchus Nominosuchus Shartegosuchus Metasuchia †Ziphosuchia see Ziphosuchia includes notosuchians Neosuchia see Neosuchia includes crocodilians
See also: Rauisuchia Prestosuchidae Bathyotica Sphenosuchia Protosuchia Mesosuchia Category

• Rauisuchids
• Late Triassic reptiles of Europe
• Fossil taxa described in 1861
• Prehistoric pseudosuchian genera