Prehistoric Croc Named for WCS Reptile Expert May 23, 2012
Bigger than its cousin the Nile crocodile (pictured here), the
horned crocodile loomed large in prehistoric times. Researchers
recently unearthed its fossil in Kenya, and concluded that the
behemoth exceeded 27 feet in length. Undoubtedly, it preyed on
our ancestors of two to four million years ago. Scientists have
named the horned croc Crocodylus thorbjarnarsoni, in honor of
the late WCS conservationist Dr. John Thorbjarnarson. In their
study published in the latest Journal of Vertebrate
Paleontology, Christopher Brochu of the University of Iowa and
Glenn Storrs of the Cincinatti Museum Center stated that Dr.
Thorbjarnarson’s untimely death in February 2010 “left a legacy
of unmatched achievement in the biology and conservation of
crocodylians worldwide.” To learn more about the fossil, read
this article from MSNBC >>