Ceoptera
Ceoptera was a flying reptile that lived about 168 to 165 million years ago. It soared over the lagoons of what is now Scotland, catching fish with its beak. This pterosaur is one of the few Middle Jurassic flying reptiles known from more than just a few teeth.23
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Fun facts
Ceoptera is one of only four Middle Jurassic pterosaurs known from an associated skeleton, meaning bones that were found together.3
Many of Ceoptera's bones are still completely hidden inside rock and can only be studied using CT scans, like a medical scanner.1
Ceoptera belongs to a group called Darwinoptera, and its discovery shows that this group was more widespread than scientists thought, with relatives also found in China.1
The name Ceoptera comes from the Scottish Gaelic word for mist, because the Isle of Skye is often called the 'Isle of Mist'.1
Ceoptera lived in a warm, shallow lagoon environment alongside sharks, crocodilians, and early mammals.3
Most asked questions about Ceoptera
?How big was Ceoptera?
Ceoptera had a wingspan of about 1.6 metres (5.2 feet), making it roughly the size of a large hawk.65
?When did Ceoptera live?
Ceoptera lived about 168 to 165 million years ago, during the Middle Jurassic period.65
?What did Ceoptera eat?
Ceoptera likely ate fish, catching them with its beak while flying over lagoons.5
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For dino experts
- Scientific name
- Ceoptera
- Named by
- Martin-Silverstone et al. 20237
- Group
- Flying reptiles
- Family / clade
- Darwinoptera7
- Classification
- Pterosauria7
- Age of the rocks
- 168 to 165 million years (Bathonian)7
- Rock formations
- Kilmaluag7
- Countries
- United Kingdom7
- Fossil records
- 1 in the Paleobiology Database7
- Discovery
- Ceoptera was named in 2023 by Elizabeth Martin-Silverstone and colleagues. The partial skeleton was found on a boulder on a beach on the Isle of Skye, Scotland, and was collected using hand tools and a small angle-grinder.23
- Still debated
- Scientists are still debating exactly how Ceoptera is related to other pterosaurs, because the Middle Jurassic fossil record is very sparse.3
Where the facts come from
- New species of Jurassic pterosaur discovered on the Isle of Skye | Natural History Museum (nhm.ac.uk)
- PBDB Taxon (paleobiodb.org)
- A new pterosaur from the Middle Jurassic of Skye, Scotland and the early diversification of flying r (dinodata.de)
- Ceoptera (en.wikipedia.org)
- New pterosaur from Skye reveals the hidden diversity of the Middle Jurassic | Natural History Museum (nhm.ac.uk)
- Ceoptera (Wikipedia) (Wikipedia)
- Ceoptera in The Paleobiology Database (CC BY 4.0): age, places, rock formations, classification.
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