Suchodus

Suchodus Temporal range: Callovian - Oxfordian,
Restoration of S. durobrivensis
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Clade:	Archosauria
Clade:	Pseudosuchia
Clade:	Crocodylomorpha
Suborder:	†Thalattosuchia
Family:	†Metriorhynchidae
Subtribe:	†Plesiosuchina
Genus:	† Lydekker, 1890
Type species
†Suchodus durobrivensis Lydekker, 1890

Suchodus is an extinct genus of metriorhynchid thalattosuchian from the Middle to Late Jurassic period of England and France. It measured between 3.3 and 4.7 m (11 and 15 ft) in total body length.^[1] It was a fully marine reptile that would have fed on other large marine fauna.

In the 2000s, phylogenetic analysis has shown that Suchodus is a distinct metriorhynchid genus.^[2][3]

S. durobrivensis was originally the type species of the genus Suchodus, but it was regarded as a junior synonym of Metriorhynchus by Andrews, 1913.^[4] It's the only known valid species of the genus.

Suchodus is a member of the metriorhynchid subfamily called Geosaurinae and the derived tribe Geosaurini. Members were generally large marine predators, adapted to open-ocean life with streamlined bodies, powerful tails, and long, robust jaws lined with sharp teeth. Suchodus is most closely related to the genus Plesiosuchus, both forming the group Plesiosuchina.

The cladogram below is from an analysis by Léa Girard and colleagues in their description of Torvoneustes jurensis. ^[5]