schwimmer noted in 2002 that erickson and brochu's assumptions about growth rates are only valid if the osteodermal rings reflect annual periods, as they do in modern crocodilians. according to schwimmer, the growth ring patterns observed could have been affected by a variety of factors, including "migrations of their prey, wet-dry seasonal climate variations, or oceanic circulation and nutrient cycles". if the ring cycle were biannual rather than annual, this might indicate "deinosuchus" grew faster than modern crocodilians, and had a similar maximum lifespan.