Triops Longicaudatus
Triops Longicaudatus Red
Triops Longicaudatus
Triops Longicaudatus Red
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Palaeontology: Pterosaurs were once prey for prehistoric crocodiles
The Azhdarchidae, a group of pterosaurs, are among the largest flying creatures in the history of the earth. Adult specimens reached the size of a standing giraffe and impressed with wingspans of up to eleven metres. However, a young animal discovered in Canada was far removed from these dimensions – it died at a young age. Particularly remarkable is the neck bone found, which shows unique bite marks.
Hardly an escape route
Since the classic film ‘Jurassic Park’, pterosaurs have been regarded as feared hunters of the skies. But even they were not safe from predators, as the analysed bite marks prove. Caleb Brown from the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology in Drumheller, Canada, and his team suspect that a crocodile attacked the young animal and possibly tried to eat it – a unique find to date. The young animal had an estimated wingspan of around two metres and lived around 76 million years ago in the Cretaceous period in what is now Canada. The researchers believe that the tracks can be traced back to Leidyosuchus canadensis, an ancestor of today’s alligators.
While adult Azhdarchidae probably posed no serious threat to such predators – they may even have been a danger to the crocodiles themselves – the juveniles were definitely at risk. Their light bones, similar to those of modern birds, made them particularly vulnerable to attack. In contrast, crocodiles possessed enormous biting power, which left little chance of escape. However, it remains unclear whether the prehistoric alligator actually preyed on the young pterosaur or merely helped itself to an already dead carcass. Earlier fossil finds show that sharks also ate pterosaurs, as remains have been found in fossilised fish stomachs.
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- Palaeontology: Pterosaurs were once prey for prehistoric crocodiles - 24. January 2025
