Scientists Discover New Flying Reptile Species In Fossilised Dinosaur Vomit

In a surprising scientific discovery, researchers have identified a new extinct flying reptile species inside fossilised dinosaur vomit. The remains, known as "regurgitalite," have been stored for years in the Museu Camara Cascudo at the Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte in Brazil. Although they had been kept safely in the museum, they were mostly ignored until now, reported Newsweek.

This fossil was preserved with other specimens from the Araripe region, but its provenance and collection time were unclear. The specimen included bones from two individuals of the recently identified filter-feeding pterosaur species Bakiribu waridza and four fossil fish.

The researchers reported that the pterosaur bones likely broke during swallowing, as the predator chewed them with force while eating. They also noted that the absence of soft tissue matches a common pattern seen in regurgitates, where soft parts are digested first, leaving hard parts intact. Changes after burial may also have influenced their preservation.

The team studied the evolutionary relationships of this species through phylogenetic analysis, and paleohistological analysis revealed clearly preserved dentin and pulp cavities in the bones. Many pterosaurs have been found in this region, but this is the first filter-feeding pterosaur known from the tropics.

According to the researchers, Bakiribu's jaws are very long and have dense, brush-like rows of teeth. These features resemble those of Pterodaustro, another filter-feeding pterosaur, but the two differ in the size and spacing of the teeth.

Both species belong to the Ctenochasmatidae family, known for their long, needle-like teeth. This regurgitate also provides rare evidence that pterosaurs preyed on larger dinosaurs.

The study suggests that the arrangement of the remains suggests the predator first ate pterosaurs, then fish, and later regurgitated some of this mixed material due to discomfort or obstruction from the pterosaur bones.

The researchers believe that spinosaurid dinosaurs and ornithoceriform pterosaurs are the most likely candidates for this predator, as both were fish-eating and have been found in the same area. They also noted that earlier evidence from the same geological formation had found a spinosaurid tooth embedded in the neck bone of an ornithoceriform pterosaur.