Proterosuchus

Proterosuchus is an extinct genus of archosauriform reptiles from the Early Triassic. Its fossils are known chiefly from southern Africa.

Archosauriformes: Archosauriformes is a group of reptiles that includes archosaurs and their extinct relatives. Proterosuchus belongs to this broader group, which arose near the start of the Triassic.
Proterosuchus fergusi: Proterosuchus fergusi is a species of Proterosuchus named from fossils found in South Africa. It is the type species on which the genus name is based.
Archosauriform skull: An archosauriform skull is the distinctive skull structure found in archosauriform reptiles. Proterosuchus had a long skull with an overhanging tip of the snout.
Robert Broom: Robert Broom was a Scottish-born South African physician and paleontologist who studied fossil vertebrates. Broom named Proterosuchus from South African fossils in the early twentieth century.
Archosauria: Archosauria is the reptile group that includes crocodilians, birds, and their extinct relatives. Proterosuchus was an archosauriform, but not a member of Archosauria.
Lystrosaurus Assemblage Zone: The Lystrosaurus Assemblage Zone is a fossil-rich interval of Early Triassic rocks in southern Africa. Fossils assigned to Proterosuchus occur in deposits associated with this assemblage zone.
S-shaped neck: An S-shaped neck is a curved vertebral arrangement that lets an animal hold and move its head flexibly. Its neck vertebrae suggest a flexible head posture useful for feeding.
Fossil: A fossil is preserved evidence of ancient life, including bones, impressions, or traces. The genus is known through fossil remains rather than direct observations of the living animal.
Diapsid: A diapsid is a reptile whose skull ancestrally has two openings behind each eye socket. Its skull belongs to the diapsid pattern inherited by archosauriforms.
Burgersdorp Formation: The Burgersdorp Formation is a sequence of Triassic sedimentary rocks in South Africa. Its fossil-bearing beds preserve remains attributed to Proterosuchus.

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EuparkeriaCompared with: It represents an earlier archosauriform grade against which Euparkeria's anatomy can be compared.