Lewisuchus

Lewisuchus is a genus of archosaur that lived during the Late Triassic (early Carnian). As a silesaurid dinosauriform, it was a member of the group of reptiles most commonly considered to be the closest relatives of dinosaurs (possibly true dinosaurs themselves). Lewisuchus was about long. Fossils have been found in the Chañares Formation of Argentina. It exhibited osteoderms along its back.

== History == The first remains of Lewisuchus were discovered in a 1964-1965 joint expedition by the Museo de La Plata and Harvard's Museum of Comparative Zoology. These remains were preserved in a carbonate nodule recovered from the Chañares Formation of Argentina. It contained a partial skeleton of Lewisuchus, including parts of the skull, braincase, many vertebrae, scapulocoracoids, humeri, and tibiae. A gomphodont and bones from several other species of archosaurs were also preserved in the same nodule. An isolated lower jaw and foot bones were also initially referred to Lewisuchus, but these were later identified as belong to proterochampsids. This is also likely true of an astragalus found alongside the skeleton.