Barinasuchus arveloi

Overview

Barinasuchus arveloi is a sebecid reptile known from the front of the head with an articulated lower jaw. Its tall snout and strong jaws provide comparative clues. Even an incomplete anterior head reveals the construction of several bones and teeth.^[1]

Key facts

A plaster cast of the type specimen MAAT-0260 is also recorded. This is a case of comparing the original’s form through replica material. The same fossil reaches researchers through different collection records.^[1]

Time and place

The type specimen is Middle Miocene material from the upper Parángula Formation at Quebrada Socó in present-day Venezuela. The Miocene as a whole was roughly 23–5.3 million years ago. Records of the front of the head and lower jaw reveal a reptile from this locality.^[1][3]

The time range describes source context, not the complete duration of this species.

Size, form and skeleton

The type specimen is described as an incomplete anterior head with an articulated lower jaw. The genus diagnosis explains short, tall premaxillae, a high external nasal opening, a strong lower jaw, and varied tooth forms. The height of the front of the head can be examined together with the jaw.^[1]

The type specimen of Barinasuchus arveloi reaches 70cm in length despite preserving only the front of the head. Because the fossil preserves the skull and lower jaw articulated, this figure is the length of the surviving portion, not the entire head. It suggests how striking its large jaws and teeth must have been.^[4]

Habitat and reproduction

What limbs did other related sebecid reptiles have? Research on the body skeleton of Sebecus icaeorhinus interpreted long limbs and a terrestrial lifestyle. Head material from Barinasuchus and body bones from related forms can be compared at different scopes.^[1][2]

Fossil discovery

The original description addressed the anterior skull and lower jaw of MAAT-0260. MCN-USB:01-94 PB is recorded as a plaster cast of this type specimen. The original fossil and a replica preserving its form together convey traces of research.^[1]

References

1. Paolillo·Linares — Cenozoic South American sebecids
2. Pol et al. — Comparisons of the body skeleton and limbs of Sebecus
3. International Commission on Stratigraphy (2024) — Geological time chart
4. Paolillo·Linares (2007) — Sebecid crocodilians of Cenozoic South America
5. Fukui Prefectural Dinosaur Museum — Tylosaurus proriger specimen
6. Jiménez-Huidobro & Caldwell (2019) — Morphology and relationships of tylosaurines

Research questions

What can be learned when only the front of the head survives? Snout height, nostrils, and the relationships among jaws and teeth can be examined. Even in an incomplete fossil, several features of the preserved region provide starting points for comparison.^[1]

Observation

Move your gaze from the tall front of the snout to the nostrils and lower jaw. Examining the different tooth forms too helps reveal diverse structures within a small anterior region of the head.^[1]