An ancient skull hints crocodiles swam from Africa to the Americas

Features of a fossil from what’s now Libya tie the animal closely to its extant American kin

Crocodylus checchiai illustration

Like its American relatives, Crocodylus checchiai (illustrated) sported a bump on its snout.

Dawid A. Iurino

A resemblance between a long-lost African crocodile and modern American crocs goes beyond the shared bump on their snouts.