Australia's Ancient Dragon Fossil Unearthed, Fearsome Reptile Dominated Outback Skies

Dinosaurs have always been a wondrous topic for researchers. The stories each fossil tells of the fearsome reptiles as they dominated the seas, mountains, and skies are nothing short of extraordinary. Today, researchers from the University of Queensland have discovered the remains of an ancient reptile, which, according to researchers, is the closest to dragons to be ever unearthed.

What are Pterosaurs?

Pterosaurs, the winged lizards, according to UC Berkely, are a group of dinosaurs that range in size from as small as sparrows to some even as large as airplanes. During the Jurassic and Cretaceous era, the winged reptiles dominated the skies as the only ever known large vertebrates to fly.

For pterosaurs, the appearance of flight was separate from the evolution of flight in bats and birds. On the contrary, despite the name, these reptiles were not as closely related to bats or birds as scientists originally thought.

For generations, researchers have debated where pterosaurs fit in as regards evolution. Today's leading theory suggests that pterosaurs, dinosaurs, as well as crocodiles are related to the group of animals named archosaurs.

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Australia's Dragon Fossil: the Biggest Flying Reptile To Subdue the Skies

Tim Richards, a University of Queensland Ph.D. candidate from the Dinosaur Lab of the university, led the research that scrutinized the fossil of a recently unearthed jaw bone at Wanamara County, North West Queensland.

According to Richards, the reptile is the closest thing we will ever have to a real-life fearsome dragon, SciTech Daily reports. He added that the new pterosaur unearthed named 'Thapunngaka shawi' would have been a beast feared by many, with its roughly 7-meter wingspan and spear-like mouth.

A study published in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology titled "A New Species of Crested Pterosaur (Pterodactyloidea, Anhangueridae) from the Lower Cretaceous (upper Albian) of Richmond, North West Queensland, Australia" details how the reptile's skull alone would theoretically reach over a meter long in length and contain roughly 40 teeth, with a shape that is perfectly designed for grasping several fishes that are known to inhabit the Eromanga Sea, Queensland's no-longer existent body of water.

The newly unearthed species belongs to the pterosaur group known as anhanguerians that inhabited every continent on Earth during the latter parts of the Dinosaur Age. As a group of reptiles perfectly adapted to flight, pterosaurs are characterized by thin-walled hollow bones. Because of these adaptations, the fossilized remains of these dinosaurs are often poorly preserved and rare.

Richards said that it is amazing to think that the fossils of the animals exist. By the standards of the world, Australia's pterosaur records are lacking, but the recent discovery of a new species of Thapunngaka shawi greatly contributes to researchers' understanding of pterosaur diversity in Australia.

The species is one of three species of anhanguerian pterosaurs to be known to originate in Australia; all three of the species hail from Western Queensland.

One particular characteristic of the pterosaur is its massive bony crests found on the beast's lower jaw.