An artist's rendering shows a prehistoric crocodile recently discovered by scientists in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

The extinct predator, considered to be a possible ''missing link'' to modern crocodiles, measured about 5.6 feet (1.7 meters) head to tail.

Long-limbed and agile, the animal roamed the dry and hot terrain of Brazil's countryside during the late Cretaceous periodabout 100 million to 66 million years agoaccording to scientists at Brazil's Federal University.

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