Caiman wannlangstoni
Name: Caiman
wannlangstoni.
Phonetic: kay-man wan-lang-sto-ne.
Named By: R. Salas-Gismondi, J. J. Flynn,
P. Baby, J. V. Tejada-Lara, F. P. Wesselingh &
P.-O. Antoine - 2015.
Classification: Chordata, Reptilia,
Crocodylomorpha, Crocodilia, Alligatoridae, Caimaninae.
Species: C. wannlangstoni
(type).
Diet: Carnivore/Durophagous.
Size: Estimated about 1.7-1.9 meters long.
Known locations: Peru - Pebas Formation.
Time period: Burdigalian to Serravallian of the
Miocene.
Fossil representation: Partial skull.
Described in 2015, Caiman wannlangstoni was named alongside two other genera of caiman crocodiles, Gnatusuchus and Kuttanacaiman. Like these two genera, Caiman wannlangstoni had blunt, rounded teeth that would have been perfect for crunching up the shells of freshwater bivalves that would have been abundant in the Peruvian swamps of the Miocene.
Further
reading
- A Miocene hyperdiverse crocodylian community reveals peculiar
trophic dynamics in proto-Amazonian mega-wetlands. Proceedings of the
Royal Society of London, Series B 282:20142490. - R.
Salas-Gismondi, J. J. Flynn, P. Baby, J. V.
Tejada-Lara, F. P. Wesselingh & P.-O. Antoine -
2015.
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