According to a recent study, a young pterosaur's capability to fly right after it hatched from eggs is possible. Paleontologists do not doubt that their wings are already suited for flight at a young age. However, there might be some differences in how these baby dinosaurs fly compared to adult pterosaurs.
What is the Pterosaur?
Pterosaur is a group of prehistoric creatures comprised of several flying reptiles that existed side by side with other dinosaurs 288 million to 66 million years ago, in between the Triassic and Cretaceous periods. Pterosaurs consist of the largest flying creature, also known as the Quetzalcoatlus northropi, and a dinosaur that looks like a pterodactyl but has monkey abilities, also known as the Kunpengopterus antipollicatus or Monkeydactyl.
The study of the youngling pterosaur's flying ability was published in the journal Scientific Reports, entitled "Powered flight in hatchling pterosaurs: evidence from wing form and bone strength." According to the study, both baby and adult pterosaur's fossilized embryonic wings show evidence of their bone's capability to exhibit exceptional agility. The structure of the pterosaur's bones is the same when it hatches up until it is fully grown.
In previous studies, the paleontology and life science experts do not have precise data to conclude whether the prehistoric flying creatures can fly, glide, or even flap their wings in their early days. If this theory is true, the young pterosaurs are possibly nurtured by their parents until the younglings can soar the skies by themselves.
However, recent findings that evolve around the pterosaurs gradually point out that they belong to species that exhibit precociality or creatures with independence at an early age. This is due to the flight membranes identified on the wings of embryonic pterosaurs even before they hatch. The early flight ability was also identified in one of ptrerosaur's genus, Pteranodon, that can fly long-distance without the need to grow a full, adult size, reports New Scientist.
Pterosaur Hatchlings Could Fly Minutes After Birth
Young pterosaurs do not have the capability to glide, said the University of California paleontology expert who is not part of Kevin Padian's study. He added that there are three keys for a creature to fly. These are strong bones, the right muscle mass for long air time, and strong skins on their wings made of keratin fiber.
To prove their point, University of Southampton's paleontologist Darren Naish, along with their colleagues, examined and compared the features of the hatchling's wing bone and the fossilized embryo with the adult Pterodaustro guinazui and Sinopterus dongi. While conducting observations on the wing's characteristics and wingspan, they have found that the wing bone that extends to the limbs of the pterosaurs, also known as the humerus, was actually why they could take off easily from the ground.
According to their findings, the baby pterosaur's humerus bone is much stronger compared to the adults. In addition, the hatchlings' wings had shorter lengths but were broader in span. This implies that the baby pterosaurs are already able to either change direction and speed quickly or fly at a long distance, reports ScienceNews.
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