New species of flying reptile that lived among dinosaurs 200 million years ago discovered
Scientists at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History uncovered the fossilised jawbone of the creature in 2011, and have now identified it to be the oldest known species of pterosaur in North America.
Unearthed at a remote bonebed in Petrified Forest National Park in Arizona, its jawbone was preserved in volcanic ash 209 million years ago.
The new species would have been small enough to comfortably perch on a person's shoulder.
The remarkable fossil was unearthed by Suzanne McIntire, who volunteered in the museum's FossiLab for 18 years.
'What was exciting about uncovering this specimen was that the teeth were still in the bone, so I knew the animal would be much easier to identify,' McIntire said.
Because the tips of the teeth were worn down, the team concluded that the pterosaur likely fed on the site's fish, many of which were encased in armor-like scales.
The team named the new pterosaur species Eotephradactylus mcintireae. The name means 'ash-winged dawn goddess' and references the site's volcanic ash where the fossil was found.
This part of northeastern Arizona was positioned in the middle of Pangaea and sat just above the equator 209 million years ago.
The area was crisscrossed by small river channels and likely prone to seasonal floods - these floods washed sediment and volcanic ash into the channels and likely buried the creatures preserved in the bonebed.
In total, the team has uncovered more than 1,200 individual fossils, including bones, teeth, fish scales and coprolites, or fossilised faeces.
The researchers also described the fossils of an ancient turtle with spike-like armor and a shell that could fit inside a shoebox. This tortoise-like animal lived around the same time as the oldest known turtle, whose fossils were previously uncovered in Germany.
'This suggests that turtles rapidly dispersed across Pangaea, which is surprising for an animal that is not very large and is likely walking at a slow pace,' Kligman said.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Earth or Mars? See the 'deceptively' clear blue sky spotted on the Red Planet
The Martian forecast will almost always include a red sky, but a recent panorama captured by NASA's rover Perseverance shows what a blue sky would look like on the Red Planet. Iron in the dust on Mars is what gives the planet its rusty hue. In its natural color, a photo taken at a location dubbed "Falbreen" is very red. In the name of science, imaging teams enhanced the color-contrast on the image to reveal more details. Largest Chunk Of Mars Discovered On Earth Sells At Auction For $5.3 Million The final panoramic image is a mosaic of 96 images taken at a location by the Perseverance rover. "The relatively dust-free skies provide a clear view of the surrounding terrain," said Jim Bell, Mastcam-Z's principal investigator at Arizona State University in Tempe. "And in this particular mosaic, we have enhanced the color contrast, which accentuates the differences in the terrain and sky." The image below is not enhanced and shows the true reddish tint of the clear Martian sky. Cool Rocks: Nasa's Mars Rover Shows Off Its Rock Core Collection The bright white patch in the image left of the center is where Perseverance drilled its 43rd hole since its landing. Drilling into the red rock and dirt allows the rover's science team to see what is below before deciding to take a sample. Eventually, the Mars Sample Return mission will bring back some of these samples to article source: Earth or Mars? See the 'deceptively' clear blue sky spotted on the Red Planet Solve the daily Crossword
E&E News
2 days ago
- E&E News
Scientists spot jaguar as border wall, mining projects advance
Researchers say they have once again seen an elusive jaguar in southern Arizona, as environmentalists contend a federal border wall and copper mining threaten the animal's historical habitat. A team of scientists and volunteers at the University of Arizona's Wild Cat Research and Conservation Center have recorded four sightings of one male jaguar so far this summer, the center's first sightings in nearly two years, co-coordinator Susan Malusa told POLITICO's E&E News. 'It's a really powerful reminder that jaguars are still moving through corridors that connect these borderlands,' Malusa said. Advertisement In July, environmental groups sued the Trump administration over its use of environmental waivers to fast-track border wall construction in the San Rafael Valley, a key wildlife corridor for jaguars and other species.
Gizmodo
3 days ago
- Gizmodo
NASA Approves Ted Cruz's Plan to Move a Space Shuttle to Houston, Setting Up a Fight With the Smithsonian
NASA has selected a yet-to-be-named Space Shuttle to move to Houston, conceding to a long-running bid by Texas senators to house one of the iconic vehicles. If the chosen vehicle is Discovery—which it likely is—the Smithsonian, which houses the vehicle, may put up a fight. The Trump administration included the shuttle's relocation in the budget reconciliation bill, signed it into law on July 4, and set aside $85 million for the move and construction of a new facility in Houston. At the time, Texas Senators Ted Cruz and John Cornyn had their eyes on Space Shuttle Discovery, which has been on display at the Smithsonian's Air and Space Museum in Virginia since 2012. This week, a NASA spokesperson stated that the agency's acting administrator, Sean Duffy, has identified one of the retired shuttles to be displayed at Space Center Houston, without revealing which one, according to collectSPACE. It's not clear why the identity of the shuttle is being withheld or if NASA has received the Smithsonian's approval to relocate Discovery. 'There is no better place for one of NASA's space shuttles to be displayed than Space City, and I thank Acting Administrator Duffy for rectifying the Obama Administration's error and look forward to welcoming this iconic orbiter to its rightful home,' Cornyn wrote in a statement. Cruz and Cornyn first introduced the Discovery Relocation Act in April, calling on NASA and the Smithsonian to develop a plan to relocate Discovery. It provided no less than $5 million to move the Shuttle to its new home, with the remaining $80 million allocated for the construction of a new display facility at Space Center Houston. The Smithsonian, on the other hand, argues it would cost somewhere between $300 and $400 million to move the massive spacecraft across the country. It's also worried that the shuttle may be damaged during the journey to Texas. For Discovery to be relocated, NASA does require the Smithsonian's blessing, since the institution acquired the shuttle from the agency and is now considered its owner. In response to the senators' bid to relocate Discovery, the Smithsonian reasserted its ownership of the shuttle in a statement that read, 'NASA transferred 'all rights, title, interest and ownership' of the shuttle to the Smithsonian.' The shuttle is 'part of the National Air and Space Museum's mission and core function as a research facility and the repository of the national air and space collection,' according to the statement. Three other Shuttles are also on display in different parts of the country: Enterprise is at the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum in New York; Atlantis is at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida; and Endeavour is currently being set up for display at the Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center in Los Angeles. Given the state's longstanding history with the shuttle program, Texas understandably feels left out. The city of Houston in particular. While all of the Space Shuttle launches took place from Kennedy Space Center in Florida, more than 100 missions were managed from the control room at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. After the Shuttle program ended in 2011, NASA selected museums across the country to display its iconic spacecraft. The agency's process has been highly criticized, particularly by Texas lawmakers, who referred to it as the 'Houston Shuttle Snub.' Fourteen years later, Texans are still gunning for that shuttle. The bill doesn't specify which of the retired vehicles would move to Space Center Houston, only that it has flown to space and carried astronauts to orbit (i.e. it's a real shuttle and not some mockup). Although NASA is still in possession of Atlantis, the focus seems to be on Discovery. 'We continue to work on the basis that the shuttle identified is Discovery and proceed with our preparations for its arrival and providing it a world-class home,' Keesha Bullock, chief communications and marketing officer at Space Center Houston, said in a statement, according to collectSPACE. Whether the Smithsonian will give up its shuttle is still up for debate.
