A large pterosaur
| Hatzegopteryx | |
|---|---|
 | |
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Name: |
'Hațeg Basin Wing' |
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Age: |
Late Cretaceous |
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Length: |
10-11 Metres (Wingspan) |
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Weight: |
200-250kg |
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Range: |
Hațeg Island |
Hatzegopteryx was the largest flying animal ever. With a skull nearly 3 meters long and a 10 meter wingspan, it was as tall as a giraffe and the top predator on Hațeg Island. It feeds on the ground picking up prey with it's long, slender beak. It would have eaten small dinosaurs such as Magyarosaurus and possibly Bradycneme. It was a pterosaur of gigantic proportions, standing 5.5 metres tall. This would have made Hatzegopteryx one of, if not the, largest flying animal ever known, rivalled only by Quetzalcoatlus, which reached the same size. The massive lower jaw was found to have a groove that would have allowed for an impressively wide gape. Recent studies have shown that the two were indentical and that Hatzegopteryx was Quetzalcoatlus' synonym. Hatzegopteryx's heavily built skull was in contrast to other pterosaur skulls that were made up of lightweight plates. The necessary reduction in weight being achieved by the skull bones internal structure. Hatzegopteryx would have been flying the skies 65 million years ago above what is now Europe. Along with it's North American cousin, Quetzalcoatlus, Hatzegopteryx was the largest and the last of the pterosaurs. Gallery
