Xenohystrix

Zee-noe-his-triks.
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Benjamin Gutierrez

Vertebrate Paleontologist

Benjamin Gutierrez is a leading expert on dinosaurs, particularly the mighty theropods. His fieldwork in South America has uncovered new species and provided insights into dinosaur social structures.

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Name

Xenohystrix ‭(‬Foreign hystrix‭)‬.

Phonetic

Zee-noe-his-triks.

Named By

Greenwood‭ ‬-‭ ‬1955.

Classification

Chordata,‭ ‬Mammalia,‭ ‬Rodnetia,‭ ‬Ctenohystrica,‭ ‬Hytricognathi.

Diet

Omnivore‭?

Species

X.‭ ‬crassidens‭

Size

Uncertain due to lack of remains,‭ ‬but comparison to similar animals yields an estimate of‭ ‬60‭ ‬to‭ ‬90‭ ‬centimetres long.

Known locations

Africa.

Time Period

Tortonian of the Miocene through to the Piacenzian of the Pliocene.

Fossil representation

Many specimens,‭ ‬mostly of the dentaries.

In Depth

       Members of the genus Xenohystrix are prehistoric relatives of Hystrix cristata,‭ ‬also known as the crested porcupine which lives in Africa today.‭ ‬Like with their living relatives,‭ ‬Xenohystrix would be expected to have a covering of sharp quills to protect them from predators.‭ ‬Also like living porcupines,‭ ‬Xenohystrix may have eaten plants and occasionally invertebrates while also scavenging carrion from time to time.

Further Reading

– Earliest evidence for Atherurus and Xenohystrix (hystricidae, rodentia) in Africa, from the late Miocene site of Lemudong’o, Kenya ‬-‭ ‬Leslea J.‭ ‬Hlusko‭ ‬-‭ ‬2007.

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