Spinosaurus mirabilis: Giant “Sickle-Crested” Spinosaur the Size of T. rex Unearthed Deep in the Sahara

Paleontologists have unveiled Spinosaurus mirabilis, a colossal new spinosaurid species rivalling Tyrannosaurus rex in size and sporting a dramatic sickle-shaped cranial crest. The discovery, from the heart of the Moroccan Sahara, rewrites the image of these sail-backed giants as even more bizarre and formidable predators of the mid-Cretaceous.

The near-complete skull and partial skeleton were recovered in 2023 from the upper Kem Kem beds near Taouz, Morocco — an arid expanse that 100 million years ago was a lush river system teeming with fish and crocodilians. Excavated by an international team led by Moroccan and Italian researchers, the specimen lay 4 metres deep in a sandstone channel fill. CT scans revealed a 1.6-metre-long skull dominated by an elegant, blade-like sagittal crest curving backward like a sickle, plus elongated neural spines forming a low sail.

Published January 2026 in Cretaceous Research, the study estimates S. mirabilis reached 14–15 metres and 7–8 tonnes — comparable to the largest T. rex. Its conical teeth and powerful forelimbs suggest it was a versatile hunter capable of tackling large terrestrial prey as well as aquatic victims. The sickle crest, unique among spinosaurids, may have served in display or species recognition.

Housed at the Musée National d’Histoire Naturelle in Rabat, the fossils mark the first spinosaurid from the Kem Kem with such extreme cranial ornamentation. This find cements North Africa as the cradle of spinosaur evolution and shows these “crocodile-faced” dinosaurs were far more diverse — and terrifying — than previously imagined.