Eryosuchus

Eryosuchus is an extinct genus of capitosauroid temnospondyl from the Middle Triassic of northern Russia. It was a very large predator: the largest specimen known could reach up to 3.5 m (11.5 ft) in length, with a skull over 1 m long.

== History of study == thumb|left|Restoration Eryosuchus was named by Ochev (1966) based on the type species, E. tverdochlebovi from exposures of the Donguz Formation in Orenburgskaya Oblast. In the same publication, Ochev also named E. garjainovi and E. antiquus, both from the same formation and oblast as E. tverdochlebovi. Several other species previously placed in other genera have sometimes been placed in Eryosuchus, such as "Stanocephalosaurus" pronus from Tanzania and "Stanocephalosaurus" rajareddyi from India, but this is largely disputed, as is the validity of E. antiquus, which is only based on a lower jaw fragment. These species, as well as more confidently assigned species of Eryosuchus, were sometimes placed in the expansive genera Parotosaurus/Parotosuchus, which underscores the complexities of capitosaur taxonomy and the role of biogeography in formalizing such taxonomy. In the most restrictive concept of Eryosuchus (that of Schoch & Milner, 2000, and most other authors), Eryosuchus is exclusively a Russian taxon. Morales (1988) mentioned a possible new species of Eryosuchus that would represent the largest known, with an uncatalogued skull exceeding 1 m in length that would be one of the largest known temnospondyls; Schoch & Milner (2000) reiterated this and suggested that a description by Morales was forthcoming, but this specimen has never been described and could represent a different genus. If this specimen is not considered, the largest known specimen of Eryosuchus is only slightly more than 50 cm.