Knowra Crocodyliformes Crocodyliformes Crocodyliformes is a diverse group of crocodylomorph reptiles that includes living crocodilians and many extinct relatives, including terrestrial and marine forms.
Crocodylomorpha : A group of archosaurs that includes Crocodyliformes and their more distant extinct relatives. Crocodyliformes are the more restricted branch within this larger evolutionary group.
Crocodyliform locomotion : The ways crocodyliforms moved on land and through water, shaped by limb posture and body form. Posture and locomotion differed widely among terrestrial and aquatic members of the group.
Thalattosuchia : An extinct group of crocodyliforms adapted to marine life, including long-snouted forms and deep-bodied predators. Their marine adaptations represent one of the group's most extensive returns to aquatic life.
Late Triassic : The final epoch of the Triassic Period, spanning about 237 to 201 million years ago. Crocodylomorphs originated during the Triassic, before Crocodyliformes diversified.
Sphenosuchia : A set of early, mostly small-bodied crocodylomorphs traditionally placed outside Crocodyliformes. These close relatives help mark the evolutionary boundary around Crocodyliformes.
Archosauria : A reptile group containing crocodilians, birds, and their extinct relatives, including dinosaurs and pterosaurs. Crocodylomorphs belong to this broader lineage of reptiles.
Crocodyliform feeding : The methods crocodyliforms used to capture and consume prey, from terrestrial hunting to aquatic ambush. Diverse feeding strategies accompanied the group's varied body shapes and habitats.
Notosuchia : A diverse group of mostly terrestrial crocodyliforms known chiefly from Cretaceous Gondwana. Their varied skulls and diets contrast with the aquatic emphasis of living crocodilians.
Jurassic : A geological period lasting from about 201 to 145 million years ago, between the Triassic and Cretaceous. The Jurassic record captures early crocodyliform diversification, including marine lineages.
Pseudosuchia : The archosaur lineage containing crocodilians and their extinct relatives, excluding birds and their lineage. Crocodyliformes belong to this broad crocodile-line archosaur group.
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