| Hatzegopteryx Fossil range: Late Cretaceous |
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H. Late Cretaceous (100mya - 65mya refers to the second half of the Cretaceous Period, named after the famous white Chalk cliffs of southern England Chordates ( Phylum Chordata) are a group of Animals that includes the Vertebrates together with several closely related Invertebrates Reptiles, or members of the class Reptilia are air-breathing Cold-blooded Vertebrates that have skin covered in scales as opposed to hair or feathers For other meanings see Pterodactyl (disambiguation. Pterosaurs (ˈtɛrəsɔr from the Greek πτερόσαυρος pterosauros Pterodactyloidea (derived from the Greek Words πτερόν ( pterón, for usual ptéryx) "wing" and δάκτυλος Azhdarchidae (from Ajdarxo, the name of a dragon in Uzbek mythology is a family of Pterosaurs known primarily from the late Cretaceous In Biology, a species is one of the basic units of Biological classification and a Taxonomic rank. thambema Buffetaut, Grigorescu & Csiki, 2002 (type) |
Hatzegopteryx ("Haţeg basin wing") is a genus of azhdarchid pterosaur, known from incomplete remains found in Transylvania. In biology a type is that which fixes a name to a Taxon. Depending on the nomenclature code which is applied to the organism in question a type may be a specimen Haţeg (pronunciation in Romanian: /'hɑːtseɪɡ/ German: Wallenthal; Hungarian: Hátszeg) is a town in Hunedoara County A genus (plural genera from Γένος Latin genus "descent family type gender" is a low-level Taxonomic Azhdarchidae (from Ajdarxo, the name of a dragon in Uzbek mythology is a family of Pterosaurs known primarily from the late Cretaceous For other meanings see Pterodactyl (disambiguation. Pterosaurs (ˈtɛrəsɔr from the Greek πτερόσαυρος pterosauros Transylvania (Ardeal or ro ''Transilvania'' Erdély, see also other denominations) is a Central European region located in the eastern half of the Carpathian The skull fragments, left humerus, and other fossilized remains indicate a huge animal with a wingspan of 12 meters (40 ft) or more. FOSSIL is a standard protocol for allowing serial communication for Telecommunications programs under the DOS Operating system. It is known from only the type species, Hatzegopteryx thambema. In biology a type is that which fixes a name to a Taxon. Depending on the nomenclature code which is applied to the organism in question a type may be a specimen The generic name derives from the Hatzeg (or Haţeg) basin of Transylvania where the bones were found, and from the Greek pteryx, or 'wing'. A genus (plural genera from Γένος Latin genus "descent family type gender" is a low-level Taxonomic The Ancient Greek language is the historical stage in the development of the Hellenic language family spanning the Archaic (c The specific name thambema derives from the Greek for 'monster', in reference to its huge size. In Biology, a species is one of the basic units of Biological classification and a Taxonomic rank.
Hatzegopteryx hails from the Densus-Ciula Formation of western Romania, which has been dated to the late Maastrichtian stage of the late Cretaceous Period, around 65 million years ago. Romania ( dated: Rumania, Roumania The Maastrichtian is the last stage of the Cretaceous period, and therefore of the Mesozoic era. The Cretaceous (kriːˈteɪʃəs, usually abbreviated 'K' for its German translation "Kreide" is a geologic period and system, reaching from the end of A 35. 5 centimeter femur found nearby may also have belonged to Hatzegopteryx. The femur is the thigh bone In Humans, it is the longest, most voluminous and strongest Bone.
Skull
Hatzegopteryx apparently had a robust skull broadened in the rear, and a massive jaw. Its lower jaw featured a unique groove in its point of articulation, also seen in some other pterosaurs, that would have allowed the animal to achieve a very wide gape. Many of the fossilized bones of Hatzegopteryx closely resemble those of the closely related Quetzalcoatlus, though in Hatzegopteryx the skull was much more heavily built, and had a markedly different jaw articulation similar to that seen in Pteranodon. Quetzalcoatlus (named for the Aztec feathered serpent god Quetzalcoatl) was a pterodactyloid Pterosaur known from the Late Cretaceous Pteranodon (tɨˈrænədɒn from Greek πτερ- "wing" and αν -οδων "toothless" from the Late Cretaceous ( Based on comparisons with other pterosaurs, Buffetaut and colleagues (who initially described the specimens) estimated that the skull of Hatzegopteryx was probably almost 3 m (9. 8 ft) in length, which would have made it larger than that of the largest Quetzalcoatlus species and among the largest skulls of any known non-marine animals. Marine is an Umbrella term. As an adjective it is usually applicable to things relating to the Sea or Ocean, such as Marine biology, Marine [1]
The skull of Hatzegopteryx was also unique in its heavy, robust construction. Most pterosaur skulls are made up of very lightweight plates and struts. In Hatzegopteryx, the skull bones are stout and robust, with large-ridged muscle insertion areas. In their 2002 description, Buffetaut and colleagues suggested that in order to fly, the skull weight of this pterosaur must have been reduced in some unconventional way (while they allowed that it could have been flightless, they found this unlikely due to the similarity of its wing bones to flying pterosaurs). The authors theorized that the necessary weight reduction was accomplished by the internal structure of the skull bones, which were full of small pits and hollows (alveoli) up to 10mm long, separated by a matrix of incredibly thin bony struts (trabeculae), a feature also found in some parts of Hatzegopteryx wing bones. The authors pointed out that this unusual construction, which differed significantly from the irregular internal structure of other pterosaur skulls, resembles the structure of expanded polystyrene, the substance used to make Styrofoam. Polystyrene ˌpɒliˈstaɪriːn ( IUPAC Polyphenylethene is an aromatic Polymer made from the aromatic Monomer Styrene Styrofoam is a trademark for polystyrene Thermal insulation, a material manufactured by Dow Chemical Company. They noted that this would allow a sturdy, stress-resistant construction while remaining lightweight, and would have allowed the huge-headed animal to fly. [1]
References
External links
Hatzegopteryx at The Pterosaur Database
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