Well-preserved remains found in Germany in 2015 have now been identified as a new pterosaur species, solving a 200-year-old evolutionary mystery.
Skiphosoura bavarica fills an evolutionary gap that has puzzled scientists for two centuries. Pterosaurs were a species of flying reptilians that ruled the skies during the age of the dinosaurs. The Skiphosoura lived toward the end of the Jurassic Period and is considered to bridge the gap between old smaller pterosaur species that have been discovered and the most recent ones that are giant.
New pterosaur fossil a major archaeological find
The research team behind the discovery describes it as a remarkable breakthrough that significantly enhances our understanding of the ancient flying reptiles that once dominated the skies of Earth.
“This is an incredible find. It really helps us piece together how these amazing flying animals lived and evolved,” said David Hone, a paleontologist at Queen Mary University of London and lead author of the study, in a statement. “Hopefully, this study will be the basis for more work in the future on this important evolutionary transition.”
Pterosaurs are known as the first and largest vertebrates to develop wings for flight. Technically, they are not considered dinosaurs but were reptiles that lived alongside the dinosaurs. Hone said this find brings all the other pterosaur discoveries of the past into a new light.
“It also brings other pterosaur finds we had already made into focus,” said Hone.
The new pterosaur fossil is an intermediary species of what has been discovered in the past. Its size and its age are evidence of its place in the evolutionary timeline of the flying reptilians.
“In life, it would have been about 2 meters (6.5 feet) in wingspan, similar to that of large birds like the golden eagle,” said Hone.
Over the past two centuries, scientists have separated pterosaurs into two separate categories, namely smaller non-pterodactyloids and the large pterodactyloids often seen in movies. The older ones are the non-pterodactyloids. They were small and had short necks, long tails, and a long fifth toe. On the newer end of the spectrum are the pterodactyloids.
Pterodactyloids are the large flying reptilians often seen in Hollywood films. This group of pterosaurs was huge and had large heads, a short tail, and a small fifth toe. According to IFL, pterodactyloids were “the largest flying creatures until airplanes became big enough to transport elephants.”
The pterosaur fossil discovered in 2015 was extremely well-preserved. The archaeologists found every single bone of the species in 3-D, compared to the typically flat fossils of other pterosaur species. The new pterosaur fossil had a short, sharp tail with sharp teeth.
“It would have been a generalized predator of small prey, taking things like lizards, small mammals, big insects, and maybe fish. It was probably living inland, perhaps in forests,” said Hone in speaking to Reuters.
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