Chañares Formation

The Chañares Formation in La Rioja Provence, Argentina, dates to the Anisian stage of the early Middle Triassic.

The locality, from which specimens of Chanaresuchus have been found. is well known for its abundance of tetrapods. Theraspids include the kannemeyeriid Dinodontosaurus, and cynodonts such as Probainognathus and Massetognathus, the latter being the most abundant taxon of the locality. However, the most common group of tetrapods present from the formation are the archosaurs. Ornithodirans include Lewisuchus, Lagerpeton, Marasuchus, and Pseudolagosuchus. Other archosaurs include Gracilisuchus and Luperosuchus. Another proterochampsid, which was named alongside Chanaresuchus in 1971, is Gualosuchus. It is very similar in appearance to Chanaresuchus, differing only in size and cranial proportions.