GnathostomataAlligatoridae

Brachychampsa montana

Brachychampsa montana skeletal reconstruction, left lateral view, length ~2.8 m.
Scale bar = 50 centimeters
Taxon
Brachychampsa montana Gilmore, 1911
Reconstructed length
~2.8 m (9 feet)
View
Left lateral
Drawing
© Scott Hartman
Drawn
2010, revised 2018
Clade
  1. Gnathostomata
  2. Tetrapoda
  3. Amniota
  4. Sauropsida
  5. Archosauromorpha
  6. Archosauria
  7. Pseudosuchia
  8. Crocodylomorpha
  9. Neosuchia
  10. Crocodylia
  11. Alligatoroidea
  12. Alligatoridae

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An alligatorid from the Late Cretaceous of western North America, among the earliest members of the alligator branch. Brachychampsa had a short, broad snout packed with blunt, bulbous crushing teeth, which allowed for bone-crushing (durophagous) feeding that likely included turtles and other hard-shelled prey.

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