Pterosaurs Were Not Dinosaurs: Flying Reptiles Explained
Pterosaurs were flying reptiles, not dinosaurs, with 11-meter wings and hollow bones from 228 to 66 million years ago.
Why they are not dinosaurs
Pterosaurs were flying reptiles, not dinosaurs, because they lacked upright walking legs for land. They lived alongside dinosaurs from 228 to 66 million years ago for over 160 million years. Dinosaurs walked with legs under the body, while pterosaurs crawled on folded wings.
The word pterodactyl is a misnomer often used for all of them, but it names only one small genus. True pterosaurs ranged from sparrow-sized animals to giants, all with leathery wing membranes stretched over one long finger.
Largest flyers and light bones
Quetzalcoatlus was the largest known flyer, with a wingspan of 10 to 11 meters and weight near 250 kilograms. Standing as tall as a giraffe, it could walk on four limbs and launch into the sky by jumping.
Hollow thin-walled bones filled with air sacs kept the skeleton light and strong. A fused breastbone anchored huge flight muscles, while hair-like fibers kept the body warm during long flights over oceans.
- Flying reptiles, not true dinosaurs.
- Lived 228 to 66 million years ago.
- Quetzalcoatlus wingspan 10 to 11 meters.
- Pterodactyl names only one small genus.
- Hollow bones and wing finger for flight.