96M-year-old pterosaur nicknamed 'Butch' discovered in Australia
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The fossil of a 96-million-year-old pterosaur has been discovered in the Australian outback.
The remains of the giant flying reptile, which had a 13-foot wingspan, are considered among the best ever discovered, according to paleontologists. It has been named Ferrodraco lentoni, which means "iron dragon" in Latin.
"This new pterosaur, Ferrodraco, had a wingspan of approximately 4 meters (13.1ft) and a head 60 cm (2ft) long," one of the study's authors, Adele Pentland, a paleontologist at Swinburne University, said in comments obtained by SWNS. "This is based on comparisons with similar pterosaurs. It would have been an apex aerial predator."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}This new pterosaur, Ferrodraco, had a wingspan of approximately 4 meters and a head 60 cm long, based on comparisons with similar pterosaurs. This pterosaur has a large crest at the front of its upper jaws, and also had a crest on its lower jaws, however the latter is broken and its presence has been inferred from CT scan data. (Credit: SWNS)
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Pentland added: "This pterosaur has a large crest at the front of its upper jaws, and also had a crest on its lower jaws. The latter is broken and its presence has been inferred from CT scan data."
Along with its massive wings, the giant pterosaur had a head two-feet long, crests on both its upper and lower jaws and contained "unique dental characteristics, including small front teeth," which Pentland said make Ferrodraco different from other anhanguerians, making it a new species of pterosaur.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Pentland said that the Winton area, which is now comprised of sheep and cattle farms, was full of long-necked sauropods, carnivorous theropods (including T. rex), ankylosaurs, ornithopods, as well as pterosaurs. Although pterosaurs are often lumped in with dinosaurs, they are a different species.
Given the nickname "Butch," after a local mayor, Pentland said the skeleton is well preserved, even for an area that has been described as a "dinosaur graveyard" by other researchers.
"With a total of 30 bones preserved, or 10 percent of Ferrodraco's skeleton, the number of pterosaur bones reported from Australia has now tripled," Pentland said.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}One of the study's co-authors, David Elliott, said Butch is an exciting addition to the area.
"The Winton area has produced the majority of Australia's large dinosaur fossils so presenting a significant pterosaur skeleton alongside the giants with which it co-existed is a huge bonus for science, education and regional tourism," Elliott said, according to SWNS.
The research has been published in the journal Scientific Reports.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Last month, researchers discovered an ancient reptile known as the “flying dragon of the north,” said to be the largest flying animal that ever existed, in Canada.