Rauisuchidae Huene, 1936

Nesbitt, Sterling J., 2011, The Early Evolution Of Archosaurs: Relationships And The Origin Of Major Clades, Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 2011 (352), pp. 1-292 : 203

Rauisuchidae Huene, 1936 (fig. 53)

DEFINITION: Stem: The most inclusive clade containing Rauisuchus tiradentes ( Huene, 1942) but not Aetosaurus ferratus Fraas, 1877 , Prestosuchus chiniquensis Huene, 1942 , Poposaurus gracilis Mehl, 1915 , or Crocodylus niloticus Laurenti, 1768 (sensu Sereno, 2005).

TEMPORAL RANGE: Late Triassic (?Carnian–early Norian, Rauisuchus tiradentes Huene, 1942 , to Norian, Postosuchus kirkpatricki Chatterjee, 1985 ).

SUPPORT: (1) Dorsolateral margin of the anterior portion of the nasal with distinct anteroposterior ridge on the lateral edge (35- 1)*. (2) Anteroventral process of the squa- mosal contacts the postorbital thus bisecting the lower temporal fenestra (52-2)*. (3) Longitudinal ridge on the body of the jugal rounded and restricted to a bulbous ridge (75-3)*. (4) Ventral surface of the axis possesses two paramedian keels (180-1)*.

Other possible synapomorphies: AC- CTRAN: Facial portion of the maxilla shorter than posterior portion (14-0); bulbous longitudinal ridge present on the lateral surface of the maxilla (26-2); dorsal (5 ascending) process of the maxilla remains the same width (29-1); dorsoventrally orient- ed crest located on the posterior side of the quadrate (83-1); large exit of cranial nerve VII (125-1); palpebral(s) extensively sutured to each other and to the lateral margin of the frontals (149-1); distal end of neural spines of the cervical vertebrae expanded anteriorly, so that the spine table is triangular or heart shaped in dorsal view (191-2). All of these character states are unknown in Rauisuchus .