News Paleontology

Duck-faced croc had a gap-toothed grin

By Sid Perkins

- More than 2 years ago

From Boston, at a meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science

SMILE! The fossil skull of an ancient dwarf crocodile rests neatly in a paleontologist’s palm. Christina Reed/Geotimes

Paleontologists have unearthed fossils of a tiny crocodile that boasted a smile like no other.

The 60-centimeter-long species lived about 110 million years ago in the rivers of what would become Africa, side by side with 12-meter-long cousins that ranked among the largest crocodilians ever (SN: 10/27/01, p.