But the crocodile family tree also forked about 100 million years ago, with the appearance of the enormous Sarcosuchus, which measured about 40 feet long from head to tail and weighed about 10 tons. There was also the slightly smaller Deinosuchus, which was about 30 feet long.
In North America, the oldest body fossil evidence of giant crocodiles is of Deinosuchus at about 82 million years, estimated to have been between eight to 12 metres long.
Some of them were about the size of their modern counterparts, but a few were giants. Deinosuchus, the “terror crocodile,” was an alligator that could grow to be almost 40 feet long and lurked in North America's swamps between 82 and 73 million years ago.
The research, published in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, found that the Deinosuchus, a lineage of the giant crocodilians from North America, grew up to 33 feet long and “was the largest carnivore in its ecosystem,” in the late Cretaceous period about 75 to 82 million years ago.
Crocodiles are large reptiles with scaly complexions and menacing marble-like eyes. If we were to go back in time 200 million years, we would find that the crocodile's appearance would be unchanged.
Crocodiles have cold blood
Neither of these factors was efficient during the cold and dark conditions following the Yucatan meteor impact. Crocodiles have cold-blooded metabolisms, which means they were able to live for long periods of time in severe darkness, cold, and with very little food.
There are two main reasons. First, crocodiles can live for a very long time without food. Second, they lived in places that were the least affected when the asteroid hit Earth.
The largest one ever officially measured was Lolong, who was a saltwater crocodile who measured 20 feet three inches long and weighed 2,370 pounds.
The biggest freshwater croc ever, Sarcosuchus imperator, lived 110 million years ago, grew as long as 40 feet (12 meters), and weighed up to eight metric tons (17,500 pounds).
It was about 2 to 2.5 meters in length. It dates back to the Cretaceous period. Broken refers to the crocodile being found in a massive, shattered boulder. Early neutron imaging scans detected bones that belong to the small chicken-sized juvenile dinosaur.
"Optimal climate conditions (such as in some places in Australia) with few cold periods make it easier for the crocs to grow larger," Groh said. Salty males tend to be much larger than females, Drumheller-Horton said, though age is a big factor in how big these beasts can grow.
Crocodiles
Well, crocodiles share a heritage with dinosaurs as part of a group known as archosaurs (“ruling reptiles”), who date back to the Early Triassic period (250 million years ago). The earliest crocodilian, meanwhile, evolved around 95 million years ago, in the Late Cretaceous period.
Some 75 million years ago, gigantic, 33-foot-long crocodiles roamed the Earth, a new study reports. Known as Deinosuchus (Latin for "terror crocodiles"), these creatures were among the largest crocs ever in existence, researchers said.
Its body was treated with salts, oil and resins, and wrapped in multiple layers of linen. Its last meal was still in its stomach. The demand for mummified crocodiles was intense in ancient Egypt. Thousands were bred and reared in captivity to be dispatched and expertly mummified for offerings to the potent gods.
They looked similar to modern crocodiles except they had longer legs with muscular thighs and their eyes were on the side of the head. Modern Crocodiles have their eyes on the top of their head. Their nostrils and eyes are sometimes the only things above the water so they can surprise their prey.
Giant Hunter from Ancient Big Bend Swamps
These are among the largest crocodiles ever known. With lengths of 40–50 feet and jaws studded with 6-inch teeth, these powerful predators were extraordinarily equipped to feed upon a variety of dinosaurs.
The biggest croc ever found, at 8.6m (28ft). Shot by a hunter in Queensland, Australia in 1957. Wendy Richards and 5,597 others like this. Lenny Whisenant, did I show you this crock mate ?
Cassius, the 5.48m giant holds the Guinness World Record for being the largest croc currently in captivity. Housed on Green Island in Far North Queensland, he weighs more than one tonne and is believed to be more than 110 years old. The world record was previously held by Lolong in the Philippines.
Cassius, an Australian saltwater crocodile (Crocodylus porosus), is the largest crocodile in captivity at 5.48 m (17 ft 11.75 in). The Australian saltwater crocodile is the largest and most fearsome of today's species.
Although Deinosuchus was far larger than any modern crocodile or alligator, with the largest adults measuring 10.64 meters (34.9 ft) in total length, its overall appearance was fairly similar to its smaller relatives.
The oldest crocodile on record was estimated to be 140 years old! Crocodiles are often confused with other members of their order, although they can be broken up into three distinct families.
Australia is home to two species of crocodiles, the Estuarine Crocodile and the Freshwater Crocodile. Both belong to the reptile family Crocodylidae (the 'true crocodiles'), members of the sub-class Archosauria.
When the meteor struck, temperatures on Earth's surface skyrocketed. Many animals had nowhere to flee, but roaches could take shelter in tiny soil crevices, which provide excellent protection from heat.
When an asteroid hit Earth 66 million years ago, only those feathered maniraptorans that had downsized to about 1 kilogram or so—the birds—were able to survive, probably because their small size allowed them to adapt more easily to changing conditions, the team concludes online today in PLOS Biology.
When the smaller species came out of hiding they found a charred landscape and the air so thick with soot and sulphur dioxide clouds that sunlight was almost completely blocked out for the next year. It was too dark for photosynthesis, so the herbivores died, then the carnivores.