What are pterosaurs?

Pterosaurs (Greek: "Winged Lizard"), sometimes called Pterodactyls ("Winged Finger"), reptiles that lived from the end of the Triasky period until the end of the Cretaceous period. Pterosaurs were members of the Pterosauria Order. They were the first vertebrates to develop a driven flight, after insects about 120 million years earlier. Pterosaurs lived for a relatively long time (163 million years) for the order of animals, as evidenced by their domination of the air alcove. Pterosaurs would occupy a niche similar to today's birds, but some (including some of the largest) adapted to walking on the ground with all four, with different species using either large or erect positions. Although it is sometimes shown to be unstable on Earth, some pterosaurs would be hayed by competent runners and pedestrians, able to hunt prey without taking off.

Although the pterosaurs were reptiles, lacked scales, they had a fine layer of hair, they were covered in a large stretch membrane, and were of warm distortion. Mesozoic was a time when reptiles diversifiedI in order to occupy a large number of niches that did not contain the class today. The pterosaurs were characterized by long thin skulls and enlarged brains to handle the complexity of the flight. The fragile nature of the pterosaur skull makes it difficult to study.

pterosaurs moved wildly in size, from 10 inches (23 cm) nemicolopterus to 39 ft (12 m) wings monster hatzegopteryx , the largest flying animal of a well -known, known, with 10 ft (3 m) skull, from the highest animal on the land. On several occasions, it was assumed that the largest known pterosaur skeleton found at that time represented the most physically possible flying animal, but has always been found a larger specimen. Even larger specimens can be hidden in some remote area of ​​the mesozoic layers.