RE: Sarcosuchus

["Michael de Sosa" <ofsosa@uclink4.berkeley.edu>]

> I'm actually rather disappointed in the coverage this is getting, as
> Sarcosuchus is not a crocodylian at all.  It's probably a
> pholidosaur, which means it's a "mesosuchian"-grade crocodyliform,
> but it lies outside Crocodylia.
>
> Part of this stems from the desire of certain media sources to
> simplify the language for the  public by misusing a familiar word
> rather than trusting the public with a slightly newer term.  I think
> this attitude insults the public and does the paleontological
> community a disservice.

Er...

Its name means "imperial flesh _crocodile_"...

Project Exploration's official website for it is "SuperCroc.com"...

One can hardly blame the news media when the _official expedition website_
and _official press release_ have things like "world record for a croc" and
"hyper giant crocodiles" plastered all over them.

Mike D.