Loricata
Loricata is a group of reptiles that includes crocodilians and their ancestors. It was named by German naturalist Blasius Merrem in his 1820 "Versuch eines Systems der Amphibien". Merrem considered it to be one of three groups of Pholidota (reptiles), the other two being Testudinata (turtles) and Squamata (lizards and snakes). Loricata was an early name for an order that includes crocodiles, alligators, and gharials, although the order is now referred to as Crocodylia. The name Loricata gained a new phylogenetic definition in 2011. In his study of early archosaur phylogeny, paleontologist Sterling J. Nesbitt defined it as the  most inclusive clade containing "Crocodylus niloticus" (the Nile crocodile), but not the extinct "Poposaurus gracilis", "Ornithosuchus longidens", or "Aetosaurus ferox". Nesbitt considered the following features to be synapomorphies (distinguishing features) of Loricata: Nesbitt's phylogenetic analysis placed Crocodylomorpha and several rauisuchians within Loricata. Rauisuchidae was found to be the sister taxon of Crocodylomorpha, while prestosuchids formed a series of more basal loricatans. Loricata is the sister taxon of Poposauroidea, a group of Triassic rauisuchians. Below is a cladogram of Loricata from Nesbitt (2011): França, Langer and Ferigolo (2011) found that, when added to Nesbitt's analysis (2011), "Decuriasuchus" was recovered  as the basalmost loricatan. Its addition influenced the phylogenetic placement of "Ticinosuchus" as well; in Nesbitt's original analysis it was recovered outside Loricata, but when "Decuriasuchus" was included in the analysis, "Ticinosuchus" was recovered as a basal member of Loricata. Prior to 2011, poposauroids were viewed as closer relatives of crocodylomorphs than rauisuchids and prestosuchids were. The clade Paracrocodylomorpha includes poposauroids and crocodylomorphs. Although Paracrocodylomorpha was designated to exclude rauisuchids and prestosuchids, Nesbitt found that most members of those groups are closer to crocodylomorphs than poposauroids are. Thus, the entirety of Loricata is currently considered to be a subgroup  of Paracrocodylomorpha. A clade called Paracrocodyliformes was erected in 2007 in which rauisuchids and prestosuchids were more closely related to Crocodylomorpha, and poposauroids were the most basal group. This usage is similar to Loricata.