Scientists Find 200 Million-Year-Old Flying Reptile Species

Scientists have found a new species of pterosaur that lived 200 million years ago along with the dinosaurs. The fossilised jawbone of the creature was unearthed by scientists at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History in 2011. They have now identified the fossil as the oldest known species of the pterosaur in North America.

The scientists have named the pterosaur, Eotephradactylus mcintireae, which means "ash-winged dawn goddess," referring to the volcanic ash that helped preserve its bones. The name also honours volunteer Suzanne McIntire, who discovered the jawbone.

Also Read | Some Fig Trees Can Convert Large Amounts of Carbon Dioxide Into Stone: Research

"What was exciting about uncovering this specimen was that the teeth were still in the bone, so I knew the animal would be much easier to identify," McIntire said as quoted by The Independent.

The pterosaur is approximately 209 million years old, dating back to the late Triassic period, and was found in Petrified Forest National Park, Arizona. Modern micro-CT scanning helped scientists to learn anatomical traits unique to pterosaurs, which confirmed that it was a new species.

Eotephradactylus mcintireae was about the size of a small seagull, with winged reptiles likely feeding on armoured fish, as indicated by the heavy wear on its preserved teeth.

Also Read | Oldest Rock On Earth Confirmed To Be Over 4 Billion Years Old

This discovery fills a gap in the sparse Triassic pterosaur record, providing fresh insight into early powered flight and suggesting that similar Triassic rock deposits worldwide may contain pterosaur fossils.

"The bones of Triassic pterosaurs are small, thin, and often hollow, so they get destroyed before they get fossilised," palaeontologist Ben Kligman of the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History in Washington told BBC.

"Our ability to recognise pterosaur bones in [these ancient] river deposits suggests there may be other similar deposits from Triassic rocks around the world that may also preserve pterosaur bones."