HemiHunter Posted September 9, 2021 Share Posted September 9, 2021 (edited) Yesterday, I found what I think may be a little Pristichampsus tooth. It is from the Aquia formation on the Virginia side of the Potomac. It looks unusual for a croc tooth for being so laterally-compressed. I can't tell whether it ever had serrations at the base. They may have worn off but there are no obvious ones. Also, this tooth would match the short piece of juvenile croc jaw I found elsewhere in the Aquia last year which had a similarly-shaped (unerupted) tooth. Any thoughts? Edited September 9, 2021 by HemiHunter 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HemiHunter Posted September 10, 2021 Author Share Posted September 10, 2021 @PaleoNoel @Anomotodon @sharkdoctor @MarcoSr Any thoughts, guys? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anomotodon Posted September 10, 2021 Share Posted September 10, 2021 I am not sure this is a planocraniid, lateral compression is uncommon among crocs, but not necessarily restricted to ziphodont species. Serrations in planocraniids are also quite large, much more noticeable than small denticles that are not that rare in various groups of crocodiles (see Boverisuchus tooth below). Some dyrosaurids, on the other hand, had very similar teeth - laterally compressed, long carinae, no striations/ornamentation (see descriptions of Moroccan dyrosaurids in the topic I linked, particularly Arambourgisuchus/Chenanisuchus). Your tooth is different from a known Aquia dyrosaurid, Hyposaurus, because it lacks striations, so it could be a new species, very cool find! The Tooth Fairy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al Dente Posted September 10, 2021 Share Posted September 10, 2021 (edited) Here's a similar discussion on these teeth. I found one years ago. http://www.thefossilforum.com/index.php?/topic/59601-crocodile-teeth-from-the-potomac/ Edited September 10, 2021 by Al Dente Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarcoSr Posted September 10, 2021 Share Posted September 10, 2021 I have a few Paleocene croc teeth from the Aquia Formation from the Virginia side of the Potomac River that are very similar to your tooth, and only one of them has visible serrations. The only thing written on the laterally-compressed teeth that I'm aware of is in the 2014 poster presentation "A REVISION OF THE CROCODILIAN FAUNA OF THE UPPER PALEOCENE AQUIA FORMATION OF VIRGINIA AND MARYLAND DENTON, Robert K. Jr., GeoConcepts Engineering Inc.; WEEMS, Robert E., Paleo Quest; GRIMSLEY, Gary J., Maryland Geological Society". Below is the presentation and a blow-up of the relevant portion. Marco Sr. "Any day that you can fossil hunt is a great day." My family fossil website Some Of My Shark, Ray, Fish And Other Micros My Extant Shark Jaw Collection Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharkdoctor Posted September 10, 2021 Share Posted September 10, 2021 Marco beat me to it! That poster is pretty much the go-to for those compressed teeth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HemiHunter Posted September 12, 2021 Author Share Posted September 12, 2021 Thanks @Anomotodon, @Al Dente, @MarcoSr, and @sharkdoctor! So it seems I have a tooth from an as-yet-unnamed paleocroc. I'm definitely going to take care of this one! Now if only I could find the skull that goes with it.... : ) 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharkdoctor Posted September 13, 2021 Share Posted September 13, 2021 Glad to see you are having a good summer in the field! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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