Massaliasuchus
Encyclopedia
Massaliasuchus is an extinct genus
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...

 of crocodylian that is known from fossil
Fossil
Fossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...

s found in Santonian
Santonian
The Santonian is an age in the geologic timescale or a chronostratigraphic stage. It is a subdivision of the Late Cretaceous epoch or Upper Cretaceous series. It spans the time between 85.8 ± 0.7 mya and 83.5 ± 0.7 mya...

-Campanian
Campanian
The Campanian is, in the ICS' geologic timescale, the fifth of six ages of the Late Cretaceous epoch . The Campanian spans the time from 83.5 ± 0.7 Ma to 70.6 ± 0.6 Ma ...

-age Upper Cretaceous rocks of southeastern France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

. Fossils belonging to this genus were published in 1869 by Matheron as Crocodilus
Crocodylus
Crocodylus is one of three genera from the Crocodylinae subfamily extending from the Crocodylidae family.Established species include three extinct species:* † Crocodylus acer - probably represents a distinct genus....

 affuvelensis
. The new genus name was given to it in 2008 by Jeremy Martin and Eric Buffetaut. Massaliasuchus appears to have been related to early alligatoroids
Alligatoroidea
Alligatoroidea is a superfamily of crocodilians that evolved in the Late Cretaceous period. Cladistically, it is defined as Alligator mississippiensis and all crocodylians more closely related to A. mississippiensis than to either Crocodylus niloticus or Gavialis gangeticus ....

. It is known from remains including skull bones.
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