Dagasuchus fossil map
Where fossils of Dagasuchus have been found, shown on the Earth as it looked about 230 million years ago and on today’s map.
Dots are fossil collections recorded in the Paleobiology Database. The “then” view moves today’s fossil sites back to their positions 230 million years ago (the time slice nearest the median age of the fossils) using the Merdith et al. (2021) plate model; positions are approximate. Open on the timeline map →
| Group | Crocodile relatives |
|---|---|
| Lived | 237–227.3 million years ago (Carnian) |
| Periods | Triassic |
| Named by | Lacerda et al. 2015 |
| Fossil records | 1 occurrences at 1 locations (PBDB) |
| Found in | Brazil |
| Rock formations | Santa Maria |
About Dagasuchus
Dagasuchus is an extinct genus of pseudosuchian archosaur from the Late Triassic (Carnian) of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, represented by the type species Dagasuchus santacruzensis. D. santacruzensis was named in 2015 on the basis of specimen UFRGS-PV-1244-T and UFRGS-PV-1245-T, a partial hip (one ilium and a pair of ischia) found in an exposure of the Santa Maria Formation in the Paraná Basin, near the city of Santa Cruz do Sul. Dagasuchus is an early member of a large evolutionary group called Loricata, which originated in the Triassic and includes modern crocodylians and their ancestors. Features of its hip closely resemble those of other early loricatans such as Stagonosuchus and Saurosuchus. Dagasuchus is notable for being the first loricatan found in the Santacruzodon assemblage zone of the Santa Maria Formation; previously loricatans were only known from the older Dinodontosaurus assemblage zone and the younger Hyperodapedon assemblage zone within the Santa Maria Formation, meaning that Dagasuchus fills in a gap in the fossil record of the group.
Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Dagasuchus (revision 1349940763), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0; introduction excerpted verbatim, formatting removed. Ages, family, authority and fossil records: Paleobiology Database, accessed 23 October 2026. Ages are those of the rock layers the fossils were found in. Wikidata: Q20647115.
