Montealtosuchus arrudacamposi, a prehistoric predator that could be the missing link between prehistoric and present-day crocodiles, was unveiled by Brazilian paleontologists Thursday. This according to AFP.

Montealtosuchus arrudacamposi lived in the late Cretaceous period (80 to 85 million years ago). It seems quite small compared to present-day crocodiles, measuring in at 1.5 to 1.7 meters and weighing about 88 pounds. It was more agile, however, and lived on dry land instead of in marshlands.

Paleontologist Felipe de Vasconcellos from the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, who helped research the fossil found near the town of Monte Alto in Sao Paulo state, Brazil, in 2004, had this to say:

Its nostrils were at the front (of its snout). If it went in the water it had to keep its head erect making it an easy target for other predators. Its eyes were placed laterally, like other land-walking animals.