A new Species of crocodile has been discovered by US scientists, who point out that it was hunted to extinction by the human race about 200 years ago. According to scholars, the excessive hunting of the reptile was due to constant conflicts with settlements in Bronze Age China.
The study detailing the findings made by the team of researchers at Clemson University in South Carolina, USA, indicates that the species was a close relative of the gavialids (gavialidae), one of the three major groups of crocodilian reptiles – the other two being the alligators. (where the common alligator comes in) and the aptly named “crocodile”.
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The crocodile discovered in China became extinct by human action 200 years ago, and was possibly endemic to the Asian nation during the Bronze Age expansion (Image: Ijima et al./Clemson University/Reproduction)The discovery of the new species, named Hanyusuchus sinensis, was made by studying a fossilized skull found in China. The fossil had at least a dozen marks of slashing with slashing weapons — likely axes or other heavy blades — “probably intended to kill this individual,” Masaya Ijima, author of the study and a researcher at Clemson’s Department of Biological Sciences, told Newsweek. .
According to the scholar, the species lived well into the Chinese Bronze Age, which began in 1700 BC (before Christ). The time represents a time of great expansion of the Asian nation for the search of metal ores for the creation of weapons and other objects – bronze axes, in particular, were a symbol of status. In this expansion, the meeting of mines and ore sources were commonly accompanied by conflicts with the local fauna – which includes H. sinensis.
The fossil in question had marks of blows on the neckline, but it was not known whether it was effective in decapitating the animal. According to historical records, animals that caused problems for settlements at the time were captured and publicly executed – there are cases where crocodiles “stealed” children and devoured them, for example.
The contemporary gharial is probably the closest “cousin” of the species discovered in China. This reptile is quite adapted to the aquatic environment and therefore has a mostly fair diet of fish (Image: Spanker.cz/Shutterstock)In addition to the search for bronze, other human actions ended up reducing the animals’ habitat, such as agricultural expansion and the creation of new residential districts – all factors that contributed to their extinction.
H. sinensis belongs to the category of gharial crocodilians, whose main feature is the very elongated and thin snout. The contemporary gharial is probably the closest example we have today to the ancient fossil. The species is possibly the most aquatic of the three large groups and cannot walk in a semi-upright posture – crocodiles and common alligators lift their chests off the ground when walking; the gharial drags. On the other hand, they are the most capable for fast navigation by swimming.
According to Ijima, H. sinensis may be a missing link in the search for the evolution of crocodilian reptiles, and helps us establish a blind spot in the long lineage of prehistoric reptiles.
The complete study of the new species was published in the scientific journal Proceedings of the Royal Society.
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