Fossil Reveals Ancient Pterosaurs Were Skilled Fliers

Pterosaurs were the earliest known flying vertebrates and a fossil found recently in China indicates that these creatures had unique and complex wing fibers that enabled them to fly with great precision. Read on and…shiver.

According to news sources, a team of researchers from Brazil, Germany and China have proven that the reptiles known as pterodactyls, that ruled the skies from up to 220 million years ago were nor merely basic gliders. They were, in fact, highly skilled flyers. A closer view of the tissue in the well-preserved fossil’s wing via a new scientific technique that involves ultra-violet rays revealed that the hair-like fibers found in the tissue were different from any of the others that covered the creature’s body and part of its wings. Researchers estimate this could have aided the control of body temperature and indicates that they were warm-blooded. In the words of Alexander Kellner, a paleontologist at Brazil's National Museum in Rio:

"They are different from other furs we find in mammals and they provide us with another hint that these animals were able to control their body temperature, they were hot-blooded animals. This is of great importance to understanding how the pterosaur functioned."

Analysis of the fossil indicated further that the creature had several layers of fibers to control its wings, rather than one as previously thought. This could well mean that it had more stability and control over its flight than other flying animals such as bats. Pterosaurs became extinct about 65 million years ago, concurrent with the mass extinction of other dinosaurs. The next time you are flying high in the sky, maybe don’t look out the window… What do YOU think about this?