Paleontologists Discover a New Pterosaur, Filling a Key Gap on the Evolutionary Timeline for These Flying Reptiles #fossils #paleontology #pterosaurs #germany #jurassic

An illustration of two Skiphosoura bavarica in flight shows how the reptiles might have appeared in Jurassic skies. Gabriel Ugueto

Smithsonian Magazine has highlighted the recent discovery of Skiphosoura bavarica, a Jurassic pterosaur from Germany. This research was led by David Hone a paleontologist at Queen Mary University of London.  Long-time ESCONI members Bruce and Renee Lauer were co-authors on the study.  The paper was published in the journal Current Biology. The paper introduces a new species, S. bavarica, which bridges a significant gap in the evolutionary lineage of pterosaurs.  For more information, see our previous post.

“This is an incredible find. It really helps us piece together how these amazing flying animals lived and evolved,” lead author David Hone, a paleontologist at Queen Mary University of London, says in a statement. “Hopefully, this study will be the basis for more work in the future on this important evolutionary transition.”

Pterosaurs were the first and largest vertebrates to develop powered flight. They are not dinosaurs, but they coexisted with the iconic reptiles from the Triassic period to the end of the Cretaceous.