Xenorhynchopsis Temporal range:
| |
---|---|
Restoration of X. tibialis. | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Aves |
Order: | Phoenicopteriformes |
Family: | Phoenicopteridae |
Genus: | †Xenorhynchopsis De Vis, 1905 |
Species | |
|
Xenorhynchopsis is an extinct genus of flamingo from the Pliocene to Pleistocene Lake Eyre basin of Australia. Initially described as species of stork, the two known Xenorhynchopsis species are vastly different in size. X. minor is the older and small of the two species, ranging from the Pliocene to Pleistocene and being described as having reached a size smaller than that of the lesser flamingo. X. tibialis meanwhile appears to have been restricted to Pleistocene strata and was notably bigger, being counted as one of the biggest known flamingos in the fossil record.