【】The prehistoric beast -- formally named

Meet "Razana," a gigantic lizard ancestor with the teeth of a T. rex and the body of a crocodile.  。

The prehistoric beast -- formally named 。 Razanandrongobe sakalavae --。was likely a top predator in Madagascar about 170 million years ago, when dinosaurs also roamed the planet, a team of Italian and French paleontologists said Tuesday.。

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Razana had a massive jaw bone lined with enormous jagged teeth, which were similar in size and shape to those of a。 Razana had a massive jaw bone lined with enormous jagged teeth, which were similar in size and shape to those of a 。Tyrannosaurus rex。 , the scientists wrote in a study published July 4 in the journal
。 PeerJ. 。

That suggests the teeth were sharp enough to slice through hard tissue such as bone and tendon. 
。

An illustration of the head of Razana.Credit: Fabio Manucci 。

Although the ancient lizard's body was long and lean like that of a modern crocodile, Razana was made even more beastly by its deep skull shape and powerful straight limbs, the fossils indicated. 。Mashable Light SpeedWant more out-of-this world tech, space and science stories?Mashable Light SpeedWant more out-of-this world tech, space and science stories?Sign up for Mashable's weekly Light Speed newsletter.。

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Paleontologists said Razana appears to be by far the oldest and largest representative of a group of croc-like animals called Notosuchians. Little is known about the origin and early evolution of this group, and until now, these animals hadn't been known to exist during the Jurassic period.  。

"Like these and other gigantic crocs from the [more recent] Cretaceous, Razana could outcompete even theropod dinosaurs at the top of the food chain," Cristiano Dal Sasso, the study's lead author and a researcher at the Natural History Museum of Milan, said in a statement.。

Paleontologists Cristiano Dal Sasso (right) and Simone Maganuco (left) exhibit some skull bones of Razana in Milan.Credit: Giovanni Bindellini。

The Madagascar fossils are thought to predate other forms of the Notosuchia by 42 million years, according to the study.。

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The Razana seems to have roamed the area when Madagascar, which is now an island, was separating from the giant landmass of southern continents known as Gondwana, Simone Maganuco, a co-author of the study, said in a statement.。

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"It represents a further signal that the Notosuchia originated in southern Gondwana," he said.。

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"It represents a further signal that the Notosuchia originated in southern Gondwana," he said. 。

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