A "hypercarnivore" crocodile-relative species has been discovered in Argentina.
The new species, known as Kostensuchus atrox, had an incredibly powerful jaw and big teeth, similar to its modern-day relative.
Now, scientists have shed light on how it would have torn dinosaurs limb-from-limb.
The well-preserved fossil was found in the South American nation's Chorrillo Formation in Southern Patagonia.
The area is well-known for having lots of deposits from the end of the Cretaceous period, roughly 70 million years ago.
The newly discovered species had an incredibly powerful jaw and very sharp teeth
|GABRIEL DIAZ YANTEN
The discovery was detailed in a new study published in the journal PLoS One.
Its authors wrote: "Here, we expand the diversity of fossil vertebrates from the Chorrillo Formation with the description of the peirosaurid crocodyliform Kostensuchus atrox."
At the time, the region was warm and humid with a landscape of freshwater plains - were home to creatures including dinosaurs, turtles, frogs and early mammals.
The fossil of the crocodile-relative was discovered almost completely intact, including a skull and jaws.
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PICTURED: A jaw of the Kostensuchus atrox. It is thought the creature would have been one of the top predators in the region
|PLOS ONE
Researchers who have studied the bones believe the apex predator would have reached around 3.5 metres long and weighed around 250kg.
It is thought the creature's strong jaw and sharp teeth meant it would have eaten even medium-sized dinosaurs, and was one of the top predators in the region.
It is the second-largest predator found at this particular fossil site.
Rather than being classed as a dinosaur, the species belonged to a now-extinct group of reptiles related to modern crocodiles and alligators known as peirosaurid crocodyliform.
Scientists wrote: "The completeness of the new specimen reveals, for the first time, the anatomy and body plan of a large and broad snouted peirosaurid."
They were "likely top predators, as evidenced by several adaptations indicative of a predatory lifestyle and its large body size", the study continued.
"These features, as well as a reduced tooth count that Kostensuchus lacks, have been interpreted as adaptations towards hypercarnivory."
A hypercarnivore is a carnivore whose diet consists of at least 70 per cent meat.