Melanosuchus is a genus of alligatorid caiman. The black caiman of South America is the sole extant (living) species, and is the largest living member of the subfamily caimaninae, and the entire alligator family.
Melanosuchus is a member of the subfamily Caimaninae, which contains the two other extant genera Caiman and Paleosuchus, all of which are native to South and Central America. The below cladogram shows the relationships of all extant genera within Crocodilia (excluding separate extinct taxa), based on molecular phylogenetic studies.[3][4][5][6]