Dino card No. 1934 of 2,027

Xericeps

Say it: ZEER-ee-seps

Name means: “dry catcher, from Greek 'xeros' meaning dry and Latin 'capere' meaning to catch, referring to the Sahara Desert and its forceps-like beak”1

Ate: FishFlying reptilesLate CretaceousNot technically a dinosaur

Xericeps was a flying reptile that lived in what is now the Sahara Desert in Morocco. It had a long, toothless beak that curved upward like a pair of tweezers. It probably used its beak to snatch fish from rivers and lakes.1 3

Fun fact: pterosaurs flew over the dinosaurs, but they were their cousins, not dinosaurs themselves.

Lived

100 to 94 million years ago3

Late Cretaceous

Fossils found in

Aferdou N'Chaft, near Hassi el Begaa, Errachidia Province, southeastern Morocco3 1

Food

Fish3 1

Wingspan

3 to 8 m1

likely nearer the lower end of this range

Top speed

about 83 km/h (52 mph)

Flying, estimate

When did it live?

Triassic

Jurassic

Cretaceous

252 million years ago20114566, the asteroid

How big was it?

How wide were its wings?

wings as wide as 4 bicycles in a row

How big was Xericeps compared to YOU?

Just maths in your browser. Nothing is saved or sent anywhere.

How fast was it?

A person walking about 5 km/h (3 mph)

A kid on a bike about 22 km/h (14 mph)

A galloping horse about 65 km/h (40 mph)

Xericeps about 83 km/h (52 mph)

A cheetah about 100 km/h (62 mph)

cool stuff

Fun facts

Xericeps is known only from a piece of its lower jaw. No other bones have been found yet.1

Its beak was curved upward, which is why its species name 'curvirostris' means 'curved snout'.1

Xericeps lived about 100 to 94 million years ago, during the mid-Cretaceous period.3 1

It was a toothless pterosaur, like other azhdarchoids. Its jaws had ridges and grooves on top.1 2

Xericeps is one of only three named pterosaurs from the Kem Kem beds of Morocco. This area was once a river system full of dinosaurs and flying reptiles.2

Scientists think Xericeps was a medium-sized pterosaur, with a wingspan likely between 3 and 8 metres (10 to 26 feet).1

AI-made picture of Xericeps — An AI-made picture of how Xericeps might have looked, made by a computer from what scientists know. It is a guess: the real animal may have looked different, and nobody knows its true colours.

you asked

Most asked questions about Xericeps

?Is Xericeps a dinosaur?

No, Xericeps is a pterosaur, which is a flying reptile that lived alongside dinosaurs but is not a dinosaur itself.1

?How big was Xericeps?

It was medium sized for a pterosaur, with a wingspan estimated between 3 and 8 metres (10 to 26 feet). Scientists think it was likely closer to the lower end of that range.1 2

?What did Xericeps eat?

Xericeps probably used its long, curved, toothless beak to snatch fish from rivers and lakes.1

?Why did Xericeps have a curved beak?

Scientists think the upward curve helped it catch food, like fish, from water. The species name 'curvirostris' even means 'curved snout'.1

Ask Rex about Xericeps

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For dino experts

Scientific name: Xericeps
Named by: Martill et al. 20183
Group: Flying reptiles
Family / clade: Neoazhdarchia3
Classification: Pterosauria > Pterodactyloidea3
Age of the rocks: 100 to 94 million years (Cenomanian)3
Countries: Morocco3
Fossil records: 1 in the Paleobiology Database3
Discovery: The only known fossil of Xericeps was found by local mine workers at Aferdou N'Chaft in Morocco. British paleontologist David M. Martill bought it at the mine site in January 2017. He and his colleagues named it in 2018.1 2
Still debated: Scientists are not sure exactly which group of pterosaurs Xericeps belongs to. Some studies place it with the alanqids, others with the chaoyangopterids.1

Where the facts come from

Xericeps (en.wikipedia.org)
A new edentulous pterosaur from the Cretaceous Kem Kem beds of south eastern Morocco (sciencedirect.com)
Xericeps in The Paleobiology Database (CC BY 4.0): age, places, rock formations, classification.

Every fact on this page has a number that points to its source. If we got something wrong, sorry, we are dino fans, not a science journal. Tell us at [email protected] and we will fix it.

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