HOME | DD

Description

At up to 20 feet Pteranodon had one of the largest wingspans of any flying animal in the fossil record. From around 86 to 84.5 million years ago it flew along the coastal shores of an Cretaceous seaway that once split the North American continent.
The first specimens were discovered in 1870 by Othniel Charles Marsh in the chalk deposits of Western Kansas. Marsh initially thought his discovery was a part of the Pterodactylus genus of pterosaurs found in Europe, over time with more complete finds he realized that it was indeed part of a new genus separate from those previously found, but the common name stuck for most people and the name Pterodactyl is still used today in movies, poorly informed books and other media.
Marsh changed the name after seeing the skull, which was different from other pterosaurs due to it being the first species discovered without teeth, so he named it Pteranodon, meaning “wing without tooth.”
We know, based on fossil evidence that Pteranodon fed mostly on fish and other coastal marine life, with fossils being found with the remains of prehistoric fish inside their stomachs and around their remains, it’s thought that Pteranodons might have been able to dive into the water or skim the surface like some modern sea birds.
Pteranodon is one of the few prehistoric animals that we have evidence of sexual dimorphism in, as some of the adult remains appear to be smaller with less pronounced crests while others appear to be much larger with big ones, it’s thought that the larger specimens with bigger crests were males as the pelvic bones in the smaller specimens appear to be more spacious to make room for a birth canal. Theories about their social structures have also been suggested based on their apparently being a larger number of female specimens being found, leading to the possibility that a small number of males would mate with a large number of females, competing with each other for dominance as seen in some modern animal species like Sea Lions.
The distinctive crests of Pteranodons appear to have mostly been used for species recognition or gender identification, though many scientists have suggested theories that they could have been used like rudders or even as heat exchangers, among many other possibilities.

Description

At up to 20 feet Pteranodon had one of the largest wingspans of any flying animal in the fossil record. From around 86 to 84.5 million years ago it flew along the coastal shores of an Cretaceous seaway that once split the North American continent.
The first specimens were discovered in 1870 by Othniel Charles Marsh in the chalk deposits of Western Kansas. Marsh initially thought his discovery was a part of the Pterodactylus genus of pterosaurs found in Europe, over time with more complete finds he realized that it was indeed part of a new genus separate from those previously found, but the common name stuck for most people and the name Pterodactyl is still used today in movies, poorly informed books and other media.
Marsh changed the name after seeing the skull, which was different from other pterosaurs due to it being the first species discovered without teeth, so he named it Pteranodon, meaning “wing without tooth.”
We know, based on fossil evidence that Pteranodon fed mostly on fish and other coastal marine life, with fossils being found with the remains of prehistoric fish inside their stomachs and around their remains, it’s thought that Pteranodons might have been able to dive into the water or skim the surface like some modern sea birds.
Pteranodon is one of the few prehistoric animals that we have evidence of sexual dimorphism in, as some of the adult remains appear to be smaller with less pronounced crests while others appear to be much larger with big ones, it’s thought that the larger specimens with bigger crests were males as the pelvic bones in the smaller specimens appear to be more spacious to make room for a birth canal. Theories about their social structures have also been suggested based on their apparently being a larger number of female specimens being found, leading to the possibility that a small number of males would mate with a large number of females, competing with each other for dominance as seen in some modern animal species like Sea Lions.
The distinctive crests of Pteranodons appear to have mostly been used for species recognition or gender identification, though many scientists have suggested theories that they could have been used like rudders or even as heat exchangers, among many other possibilities.