Neosuchia

Neosuchia is a clade within Mesoeucrocodylia that includes all modern extant crocodilians and their closest fossil relatives.^[1] It is defined as the most inclusive clade containing all crocodylomorphs more closely related to Crocodylus niloticus (the Nile Crocodile) than to Notosuchus terrestris.^[2] Members of Neosuchia generally share a crocodilian-like bodyform adapted to freshwater aquatic life, as opposed to the terrestrial habits of more basal crocodylomorph groups.^[3] The earliest neosuchian is suggested to be the Early Jurassic Calsoyasuchus, which lived during the Sinemurian and Pliensbachian stages in North America. It is often identified as a member of Goniopholididae,^[4] though this is disputed, and the taxon may lie outside Neosuchia, which places the earliest records of the group in the Middle Jurassic.^[3]

Neosuchia Temporal range: Early Jurassic - Recent, 196.5–0 Ma PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N
Crocodylus niloticus, a modern crocodylid
Sarcosuchus imperator, a pholidosaurid from North Africa in the Early Cretaceous
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Clade:	Archosauria
Clade:	Pseudosuchia
Clade:	Crocodylomorpha
Clade:	Metasuchia
Clade:	Neosuchia Benton & Clark, 1988
Subgroups
†Burkesuchus †Gilchristosuchus †Isisfordia †Karatausuchus †Khoratosuchus †Montsecosuchus †Paluxysuchus †Stolokrosuchus? †Susisuchus †Tadzhikosuchus †Wahasuchus? †Atoposauridae †Bernissartiidae †Goniopholididae †Paralligatoridae †Stomatosuchidae †Tethysuchia †Thalattosuchia? †Wannchampsidae Eusuchia (includes crocodylians)

Characteristics

Life restoration of Siamosuchus, a member of Goniopholididae

Members of Neosuchia have a wide diversity of skull shapes. Several groups convergently evolved elongate gharial-like skulls, which makes determining phylogenetic relationships of these taxa problematic.^[5]

Phylogeny

Cladogram from Groh et al. 2022:^[6]

Neosuchia	†Alligatorellus †Alligatorium †Atoposauridae †Tethysuchia †Goniopholididae †Koumpiodontosuchus †Paralligatoridae †Susisuchus †Isisfordia Eusuchia