Meet "Razana," a gigantic lizard ancestor with the teeth of a T. rex and the body of a crocodile. 。 The prehistoric beast -- formally named。 Razanandrongobe sakalavae -- 。was likely a top predator in Madagascar about 170 million years ago, when dinosaurs also roamed the planet, a team of Italian and French paleontologists said Tuesday.。 Razana had a massive jaw bone lined with enormous jagged teeth, which were similar in size and shape to those of a。 Razana had a massive jaw bone lined with enormous jagged teeth, which were similar in size and shape to those of a 。Tyrannosaurus rex
。 , the scientists wrote in a study published July 4 in the journal。 PeerJ.
。 An illustration of the head of Razana.Credit: Fabio Manucci 。 By signing up you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.。 Thanks for signing up!。 "Like these and other gigantic crocs from the [more recent] Cretaceous, Razana could outcompete even theropod dinosaurs at the top of the food chain," Cristiano Dal Sasso, the study's lead author and a researcher at the Natural History Museum of Milan, said in a statement.
。 Paleontologists Cristiano Dal Sasso (right) and Simone Maganuco (left) exhibit some skull bones of Razana in Milan.Credit: Giovanni Bindellini
。 The Madagascar fossils are thought to predate other forms of the Notosuchia by 42 million years, according to the study.。 "It represents a further signal that the Notosuchia originated in southern Gondwana," he said. 。
The Razana seems to have roamed the area when Madagascar, which is now an island, was separating from the giant landmass of southern continents known as Gondwana, Simone Maganuco, a co-author of the study, said in a statement.。
"It represents a further signal that the Notosuchia originated in southern Gondwana," he said.。