Coburgosuchus
Encyclopedia
Coburgosuchus is an extinct genus
of pseudopalatine
phytosaur
. The genus was named for Coburg
, Germany
, the type locality
where specimens have been found dating back to the Late Triassic
. It has at times been considered a nomen dubium
due to the fragmentary nature of the material associated with the genus, and it may prove to be synonymous
with other phytosaurs such as Nicrosaurus
or Phytosaurus
.
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 pseudopalatine
Pseudopalatinae
Pseudopalatinae was a subfamily of crocodile-like archosaurs called phytosaurs. As with all other phytosaurs, pseudopalatines lived during Late Triassic. The name is derived from the genus Pseudopalatus....
phytosaur
Phytosaur
Phytosaurs are an extinct group of large semi-aquatic Late Triassic archosaurs. Phytosaurs belong to the family Phytosauridae and the order Phytosauria. They were long-snouted and heavily armoured, bearing a remarkable resemblance to modern crocodiles in size, appearance, and lifestyle, an example...
. The genus was named for Coburg
Coburg
Coburg is a town located on the Itz River in Bavaria, Germany. Its 2005 population was 42,015. Long one of the Thuringian states of the Wettin line, it joined with Bavaria by popular vote in 1920...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, the type locality
Type locality (geology)
Type locality , also called type area or type locale, is the where a particular rock type, stratigraphic unit, fossil or mineral species is first identified....
where specimens have been found dating back to the Late Triassic
Late Triassic
The Late Triassic is in the geologic timescale the third and final of three epochs of the Triassic period. The corresponding series is known as the Upper Triassic. In the past it was sometimes called the Keuper, after a German lithostratigraphic group that has a roughly corresponding age...
. It has at times been considered a nomen dubium
Nomen dubium
In zoological nomenclature, a nomen dubium is a scientific name that is of unknown or doubtful application...
due to the fragmentary nature of the material associated with the genus, and it may prove to be synonymous
Synonym (taxonomy)
In scientific nomenclature, a synonym is a scientific name that is or was used for a taxon of organisms that also goes by a different scientific name. For example, Linnaeus was the first to give a scientific name to the Norway spruce, which he called Pinus abies...
with other phytosaurs such as Nicrosaurus
Nicrosaurus
Nicrosaurus is an extinct genus of phytosaur reptile. Although it looked and probably lived like a crocodile, it was not closely related to these creatures, instead being a good example of parallel evolution...
or Phytosaurus
Phytosaurus
Phytosaurus is a dubious genus of phytosaur , and also the first phytosaur to be described, by G. Jaeger in 1828. It had a crocodile-like body structure, but its nostrils were on its forehead, not the tip of its snout...
.