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Pterosaurs

Pterosaurs

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 If things had worked out differently, you might see a tiny pterodactyl on your windowsill instead of a modern bird. That’s because pterosaurs evolved more than 80 million years before the earliest birds, with many of the same characteristics. Pterosaurs had hollow bones, some with an even more sophisticated structure than birds; it’s one of the things that allowed them to grow to such immense size: the largest pterosaur was bigger than an F-16 fighter jet, with a wingspan of 33 ft. These gigantic beasts were able to launch themselves because they were quadrupeds, which allowed them to run to get airborne. Pterosaurs may also have been warm-blooded like birds, as suggested by pelts of hair-like bristles found in the fossil record. They appear to have had similar social structures to birds: they reared young in nests, and some species appear to have traveled in flocks. Many pterosaurs sported eye-catching crests like today’s birds. Theirs were made of bones and skin, but are thought to have served the same purpose of attracting mates. Sharp-toothed predators, peg-toothed clam crackers, filter feeders living on lakes, pelican-like ocean fishers. Insectivores the size of today’s cardinal. Swoopers, stalkers, and scavengers. They did it all, they did it well, and they did it first! Why did more than 200 species of pterosaurs perish when the Chicxulub asteroid struck, allowing birds to take their place? It’s a mystery that scientists are still working to solve.
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