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What an old croc: Scientists unearth flat-jawed ancestor of today’s crocodiles from 95 million years ago

By Rob Waugh

Last updated at 8:28 AM on 1st February 2012

A skull unearthed in Morocco is the earliest African ancestor of modern crocodiles, say researchers.

The crocodile, known as Aegisuchus witmeri, had a huge armoured head, like a bony shield, and lived around 95 million years ago.

But despite its ‘shield’ it’s unlikely to have battled dinosaurs – instead, the unusual bone structure was used as a trap for passing fish.

Artist’s mpression of what the extinct crocodile Aegisuchus witmeri ‘Shieldcroc’ looked like. The dinosaur-age ancestor of modern crocodiles from Morocco had a huge armoured head designed as a ‘fish trap’, scientists have revealed

Its five-foot head is a structure never seen before in crocodiles.

The researchers analysed the skull, now housed in a Canadian University., and calculated that the creature would have been 30 feet long.

Instead, it probably used its long flat jaws to ambush fish.

‘We believe it may have used its long face as a fish trap,’ said undergraduate researcher Nick Gardner from Marshall University in the US.

‘It is possible that it lay in wait until an unsuspecting fish swam in front of it. Then, if it was close enough, Shieldcroc simply opened its mouth and ate the fish without a struggle, eliminating the need for strong jaws.

The shield may have been used to attract mates and intimidate enemies, or as a thermo-regulator to control head temperature.

Dr Casey Holliday, from the University of Missouri, US, said: ‘Today’s crocodiles live in deltas and estuaries, the environments put under the most stress from human activity.’

By understanding how these animals’ ancestors became extinct, we can gain insight into how to protect and preserve the ecosystems vital to modern crocodiles.’