Saltoposuchus is an extinct
genusIn 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 small (3–5 feet), long- tailed crocodylomorph
reptileReptiles are members of a class of air-breathing, ectothermic vertebrates which are characterized by laying shelled eggs , and having skin covered in scales and/or scutes. They are tetrapods, either having four limbs or being descended from four-limbed ancestors...
(
SphenosuchiaSphenosuchia is a suborder of basal crocodylomorphs that first appeared in the Triassic and occurred into the Late Jurassic. Most were small, gracile animals with an erect limb posture. They are now thought to be ancestral to crocodyliforms, which include all living crocodilians.-Stratigraphic...
), from the
NorianThe Norian is a division of the Triassic geological period. It has the rank of an age or stage . The Norian lasted from 216.5 ± 2.0 to 203.6 ± 1.5 million years ago. It was preceded by the Carnian and succeeded by the Rhaetian.-Stratigraphic definitions:The Norian was named after the Noric Alps in...
(Upper Triassic) of Europe. The name translated means "leaping crocodile". It has been proposed that
TerrestrisuchusTerrestrisuchus is an extinct genus of early crocodylomorph that was about 50 cm long. Fossils have been found in Wales and date from the Late Triassic....
gracilis and
Saltoposuchus connectens represent different ontogenetic stages of the same genus. In which case, the name
Saltoposuchus would take precedence over
Terrestrisuchus (1984). However, there is no consensus upon this yet.
The front arms were short and the hind legs were long. It was clearly a swift bipedal runner, though it was probably comfortable on all four feet as well. It possessed pointed teeth and a double row of bony scutes along its back.
It is not well known, though it used to enjoy some fame and was commonly referred to in popular literature as close to the ancestor of the
dinosaurDinosaurs are a diverse group of animals of the clade and superorder Dinosauria. They were the dominant terrestrial vertebrates for over 160 million years, from the late Triassic period until the end of the Cretaceous , when the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event led to the extinction of...
s, if not
the ancestor of the dinosaurs. Superficially, it does resemble a small theropod and indeed, a skull of
Saltoposuchus was formerly attributed to the theropod
ProcompsognathusProcompsognathus is a genus of small theropod dinosaur that lived during the late Triassic period , about 210 million years ago. Procompsognathus was named by Eberhard Fraas in 1913. He named the type species, P...
. Current scientific opinion does not however consider
Saltoposuchus to be ancestral to the dinosaurs.
Saltoposuchus was classified in the
ThecodontThecodont , now considered an obsolete term, was formerly used to describe a diverse range of early archosaurs that first appeared in the Latest Permian and flourished until the end of the Triassic period...
ia, but this group is no longer considered valid (due to
paraphylyA group of taxa is said to be paraphyletic if the group consists of all the descendants of a hypothetical closest common ancestor minus one or more monophyletic groups of descendants...
). In some popular literature
Saltoposuchus is erroneously referred to as a
dinosaurDinosaurs are a diverse group of animals of the clade and superorder Dinosauria. They were the dominant terrestrial vertebrates for over 160 million years, from the late Triassic period until the end of the Cretaceous , when the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event led to the extinction of...
.
Saltoposuchus is not to be confused with
SaltasaurusSaltasaurus is a genus of titanosaurid sauropod dinosaur of the Late Cretaceous Period. Relatively small among sauropods, though still massive by the standards of modern creatures, Saltasaurus was characterized by a diplodocid-like head...
or with
SaltopusSaltopus is a genus of very small bipedal dinosauriform, roughly 60 centimeters long, not much bigger than a rabbit, that was discovered in Scotland by Friedrich von Huene in 1910. It was a late Triassic carnivore. Probably the size of a small cat, with hollow bones like those of a bird,...
.