Aldabrachampsus dilophus Brochu, 2006
Aldabra horned (terrestrial) crocodile
Taxonomy & Nomenclature
Conservation Status
Extinct (Brochu, 2006)
Last record: Less than 120ka (Brochu, 2006)
Distribution & Habitat
Aldabra Atoll, Seychelles
Biology & Ecology
The Aldabra horned terrestrial crocodile (Aldabrachampsus dilophus) was probably around 2 meters long at maturity (Brochu et al. 2010). However, more recently reported crocodilian material that may be attributable to this species is larger than previous estimates for the species (Scheyer et al. 2018).
Hypodigm
Holotype: NHMUK R8795 (partial skull, multiple vertebrae and left femur)
Media
References
Original scientific description:
Brochu, Christopher A. (2006). A new miniature horned crocodile from the Quaternary of Aldabra Atoll, Western Indian Ocean. Copeia 2006(2): 149-58. [Abstract]
Other references:
Braithwaite, C. J. R., Taylor, J. D. and Kennedy, W. J. (1973). The evolution of an atoll: the depositional and erosional history of Aldabra. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London, Series B, Biological Sciences 266(878): 307-340. [Abstract]
Brochu, C. A., de Celis, A., Adams, A. J., Drumheller, S. K., Nestler, J. H., Benefit, B. R., ... & Nyaboke Juma, R. (2022). Giant dwarf crocodiles from the Miocene of Kenya and crocodylid faunal dynamics in the late Cenozoic of East Africa. The Anatomical Record 305(10): 2729-2765. https://doi.org/10.1002/ar.25005
Brochu, C. A., Njau, J., Blumenschine, R. J. and Densmore, L. D. (2010). A new horned crocodile from the Plio-Pleistocene hominid sites at Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania. PLoS ONE 5(2): e9333. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0009333
Hawlitschek, Oliver, Ramírez Garrido, Sergio and Glaw, Frank. (2017). How marine currents influenced the widespread natural overseas dispersal of reptiles in the Western Indian Ocean region. Journal of Biogeography 44(6): 1435-1440. https://doi.org/10.1111/jbi.12940
Scheyer, Torsten M. et al. (2018). Trophic interactions between larger crocodylians and giant tortoises on Aldabra Atoll, Western Indian Ocean, during the Late Pleistocene. Royal Society Open Science 5: 171800.
http://darrennaish.blogspot.com/2006/09/even-more-recently-extinct-island.html
https://extinctanimals.proboards.com/thread/13997/aldabra-horned-crocodile-aldabrachampsus-dilophus