New Hettangian tracks from the Causses Basin (Lozère, southern France) complement the poor fossil record of earliest Jurassic crocodylomorphs in Europe

A new ichnological assemblage from the Hettangian Dolomitic Formation of the Causses Basin, southern France, reveals rare insights into early Jurassic crocodylomorphs. The tracks, attributed to Batrachopus isp., represent the first occurrence of this ichnogenus in Hettangian deposits of the region and the third in European lowermost Jurassic formations. The unique trackway, featuring tetradactyl pes and pentadactyl manus imprints, co-occurs with dinosaur tracks (Dilophosauripus williamsi and Grallator isp.), suggesting crocodylomorphs inhabited marginal-littoral environments alongside theropod-dominated faunas. Sedimentological analysis indicates these tracks were formed in a tidal to supratidal flat marsh periodically exposed above sea level, providing evidence of the ecological dynamics of this UNESCO World Heritage Site's early Jurassic landscape.

Moreau, J.-D., Fara, E., Néraudeau, D., & Gand, G. (2017). New Hettangian tracks from the Causses Basin (Lozère, southern France) complement the poor fossil record of earliest Jurassic crocodylomorphs in Europe. Historical Biology, 31(3), 341–352. https://doi.org/10.1080/08912963.2017.1370587