About 210 million years ago, a strange "bird" with a pelican-like pouch, big fangs and a large, five-foot wingspan circled above the Utah desert, searching for its next meal. Now, after discovering the pterodactyl's fossilized remains in northeastern Utah, scientists suggest the creature was the first flying vertebrate on Earth, according to a new study released Monday. In fact, the new fossil pushes back the first flying vertebrate by some 65 million years, all the way back into the Triassic period. The new pterodactyl (flying reptiles that scientists officially call a pterosaur) specimen is named Caelestiventus hanseni, which in Latin means "heavenly wind." Dating back more than 200 million years, it’s one of the earliest ever found. "Triassic pterosaurs are extraordinarily rare," said study lead author Brooks Britt, a geologist at Brigham Young University. The animal was not a bird nor a dinosaur, though it lived at about the same time as the famed beasts. The specimen was remarkably well-preserved, the study noted. Part of the fossil included a nearly intact skull. Experts say this is an amazing discovery for such old bones. “Most pterosaur bones look like roadkill,” Britt said. “For this animal, we have the sides of the face and the complete roof of the skull, including the brain case, complete lower jaws and part of the wing,” he said. It was also a giant for its time, as most early pterosaurs were rather small. As for the creature's pelican-like pouch, it may have been used to store prey in flight or to make sounds to attract mates, Discover magazine said. The pouch also wasn't used to store fish for eating later, as pelicans do, according to Science magazine. This is because the desert oasis where it died apparently hosted only reptiles. Until Britt’s discovery, there were only 30 known Triassic pterodactyl specimens anywhere on Earth, most of them just a single bone. Also, none lived in deserts, which means that early pterosaurs could live in varied environments and were widely distributed around the planet. Most other specimens have been discovered in the Alps. “We’re getting insights into the beginning of pterosaurs,” Britt said. “Our (study) shows that they're extraordinarily diverse.” The study was published in the peer-reviewed British journal Nature Ecology & Evolution. https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech...pterodactyl-discovered-utah-desert/977979002/
I remember as a kid how the pterodactyl was the flying "dinosaur" that we always heard about, and I had it in my head that they were huge. Blew my mind when I learned very recently how normal-sized the pterodactyl was (like the post says, 5-foot wingspan), and that it was actually only the pteranodon that boasted the 20-foot wingspan. Felt like a part of my childhood died when I read that.
It was also one of my favorite creatures from the dinosaur era....also probably why I like Jurassic Park III which nobody else seemed to like...what I don't understand is how they know Utah was a desert back then or that it only ate reptiles? ….seems like it would have been a tropical area with water and fish but I'm no archeologist or geologist. Cool find though...my son's ex roommate is an archeologist and works in Utah...wonder if she was involved in the dig? Have to ask him next time I get a chance
Yep. That was the other thing I learned that day. Never read anything of consequence. Stick to safe sources that won't teach you anything, like SportsTwo.
For me, it was when I finally figured out that the coyote was never going to get the roadrunner no matter how many cartoon episodes I watched.
I would've thought Utah was an ocean at that time, I know parts of Wyoming were. I've hiked up in the mountains at elevations over 8000 feet and found sea shells.
There was a large pterodactyl like bird that was able to fly from Africa to Brazil millions of years ago. It was huge. I don't remember a lot from the documentary that I saw years ago but I remember that much.
I was told as a young adult, dinosaurs are fake and made up by the media. Therefore this is fake news.
Hell no, they were vegan. The lived on Kale and Barley. (At least the Flintstones, were. So Hollywood).
