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Protosuchia Temporal range: Late Triassic - Late Cretaceous
A skeleton of Protosuchus richardsoni in the American Museum of Natural History
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Clade:	Archosauria
Clade:	Pseudosuchia
Clade:	Crocodylomorpha
Clade:	Crocodyliformes
Informal group:	†Protosuchia Mook, 1934
Subgroups
See text.

Protosuchia is a group of extinct Mesozoic crocodyliforms. They were small in size (~1 meter in length) and terrestrial. In phylogenetic terms, Protosuchia is considered an informal group because it is a grade of basal crocodyliforms, not a true clade.

Classification

Recent phylogenetic analyses have not supported Protosuchia as a natural group. However, two studies found a clade of Late Triassic-Early Jurassic animals:

• Edentosuchus
• Hemiprotosuchus
• Orthosuchus
• Protosuchus

Both of these studies also found a clade more closely related to Hsisosuchus and Mesoeucrocodylia consisting of Late Jurassic-Late Cretaceous genera:

• Neuquensuchus
• Shantungosuchus
• Sichuanosuchus
• Zosuchus

However, other possible protosuchians from the Late Cretaceous of China-Mongolia, the Gobiosuchidae (Gobiosuchus and Zaraasuchus), have been found to be either intermediate between these two clades, or members of the Sichuanosuchus clade. There is also another family of Late Jurassic-Late Cretaceous genera, the Shartegosuchidae (e.g. Kyasuchus, Shartegosuchus and Nominosuchus).

Below is a cladogram from Fiorelli and Calvo (2007). Protosuchians are marked by the green bracket.

References

1. ^ Pol D, Ji S-a, Clark JM, Chiappe LM. 2004. Basal crocodyliforms from the Lower Cretaceous Tugulu Group (Xinjiang, China), and the phylogenetic position of Edentosuchus. Cretaceous Research 25: 603-622.
2. ^ Fiorelli LE, Calvo JO. 2007. The first "protosuchian" (Archosauria: Crocodyliformes) from the Cretaceous (Santonian) of Gondwana. Arquivos do Museu Nacional, Rio de Janeiro 65 (4): 417-459.

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

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• Crocodyliforms
• Terrestrial crocodylomorphs
• Triassic crocodylomorpha
• Jurassic crocodylomorphs
• Early Cretaceous crocodylomorphs
• Late Cretaceous crocodylomorphs
• Late Triassic first appearances
• Late Cretaceous extinctions
• Paraphyletic groups
• Prehistoric archosaur stubs