A New Rhamphorhynchid Pterosaur (Pterosauria) from the Middle Jurassic Tiaojishan Formation of Western Liaoning, China

A new Sordes-like pterosaur Jianchangopterus zhaoianus gen. et sp. nov. is erected based on a almost complete skeleton with skull preserved. It is characterized by the following characters: seven and six pairs of upper jaw and lower jaw teeth respectively; the development of a recess on maxilla; the evenness of the dental margin in lateral view; a distinct central ridge along dorsal surface of the mandibular symphysis; wing phalanx 4 with strongly curved shaft approximately 96% the length of the wing phalanx 1. The discovery of a Sordes-like pterosaur Jianchangopterus, and other taxa from the same formation indicates that pterosaurs reached great diversities during the Middle to Upper Jurassic period.     

A possible azhdarchid pterosaur from the Crato Formation (Early Cretaceous,Aptian) of northeast Brazil

The partially articulated, distal portion of a left wing finger of a pterosaur from the Crato Formation of northeast Brazil has a T-shaped cross-section to the second and third phalanges. This cross-sectional shape is one of several characters diagnostic of the pterodactyloid pterosaur family Azhdarchidae (Unwin & Lu 1997). Until now, this family of pterosaurs was known exclusively from the Late Cretaceous. The specimen described here may be the first recorded azhdarchid from the southern hemisphere and the earliest recorded member of the family.     

A New Non‐Pterodactyloid Pterosaur from Qinglong County,Hebei Province of China

A new basal non-pterodactyloid pterosaur, Changchengopterus pani gen. et sp. nov., is erected, on the basis of a nearly complete postcranial skeleton. The new taxon is distinguished by relatively short extensions of the prezygapophyses, postzygapophyses and haemal arches of the caudal vertebrae; a humerus that has a subtriangular deltopectoral crest; limb elements that decrease in length in the following order: ulna> wing-phalange 2 > wing-phalange 3 = wing-phalange 1>humerus >tibia>femur>wing-metacarpal. Phylogenetic analysis suggests that Changchengopterus is a basal member of rhamphorhynchoids, and more closely related to Dorygnathus than to other rhamphorhychoids. The geological age of the Changchengopterus -bearing sediments is no latter than the end of the Late Jurassic and it is possible Middle Jurassic.     

A New Chinese Anurognathid Pterosaur and the Evolution of Pterosaurian Tail Lengths

A new anurognathid pterosaur specimen from the Middle Jurassic Tiaojishan Formation of Qinglong, northern Hebie Province is described. The new specimen is referred to Dendrorhynchoides, based on the general morphology of the skeleton, but it represents a new species, named here as Dendrorhynchoides mutoudengensis sp. nov.. It is characterized by the presence of short, robust and straight teeth, and bearing wing metacarpal approximately 40% of the length of humerus. The new specimen provides further osteological information for anurognathid pterosaurs, especially the presence of a relatively elongate tail.     

鹅喙翼龙的形态学和埋藏学

Cycnorhamphus suevicus is one of the rarest pterosaur species known from the Upper Jurassic Solnhofen Limestones of southern Germany. The virtually complete holotype specimen was described by Quenstedt (1855) as Pterodactylus suevicus and rede scribed by Plieninger (1907), and a second incomplete specimen, which was destroyed during World War II,was described by Wagner (1858).     

A Baby Pterodactyloid Pterosaur from the Yixian Formation of Ningcheng, Inner Mongolia, China

A new baby pterodactyloid pterosaur with soft tissue preserved.Ningchengop terus liuae gen. et sp.nov.,is erected based on a nearly complete skeleton with a skull.It was characterized by the skull, slightly longer than the combined length of the dorsal and sacral vertebrae;50 teeth(including upper and lower jaws);short mid-cervical vertebrae;the humerus and the scapula, equal to that of the wing metacarpal in length;the ulna and the femur, equal to that of the first and third wing phalanx in length, respectively.The similar ratio of the wing phalanx 2 to wing phalanx 1 of Ningchengopterus and Eosipterus implies that Ningchengopterus may be close to the ctenochasmatid pterosaur.However, it may also imply that the isometrically growing of the first two wing phalanges exists among some pterosaurs.     

A Baby Pterodactyloid Pterosaur from the Yixian Formation of Ningcheng,Inner Mongolia,China

A new baby pterodactyloid pterosaur with soft tissue preserved, Ningchengopterus liuae gen. et sp. nov., is erected based on a nearly complete skeleton with a skull. It was characterized by the skull, slightly longer than the combined length of the dorsal and sacral vertebrae; 50 teeth (including upper and lower jaws); short mid-cervical vertebrae; the humerus and the scapula, equal to that of the wing metacarpal in length; the ulna and the femur, equal to that of the first and third wing phalanx in length, respectively. The similar ratio of the wing phalanx 2 to wing phalanx 1 of Ningchengopterus and Eosipterus implies that Ningchengopterus may be close to the ctenochasmatid pterosaur. However, it may also imply that the isometrically growing of the first two wing phalanges exists among some pterosaurs.     

A new azhdarchoid pterosaur from the Cenomanian (Late Cretaceous) of Lebanon

A new pterosaur, Microtuban altivolans gen. et sp. nov., is described from the Sannine Formation of northern Lebanon. The specimen is the first pterosaur from the Early Cenomanian (Late Cretaceous) locality of Hjoûla and is regarded as the most complete pterosaur fossil discovered from Africa. While postcranial characters indicate a possible relationship with members of the Thalassodromidae or Chaoyangopteridae, the specimen possesses an exceptionally short wing-finger phalanx 4, forming only 1.1% of the total length of the wing-finger. Its appearance along with an unnamed ornithocheiroid from the slightly younger locality of Hâqel suggests that a number of pterosaur taxa existed within the local area, perhaps living on exposed carbonate platforms.     

记辽宁一新翼龙化石（喙嘴龙亚目）

记述了辽宁北票四合屯炒米甸子组中一新翼龙化石,该翼龙个体极小,两翼展开仅约４０ｃｍ。化石具有同形齿、长尾、极短的翼掌骨和非常发育的后肢第Ⅴ趾等特征,因而无疑可归入喙嘴龙亚目喙嘴龙科（Ｒｈａｍｐｈｏｒｈｙｎｃｈｉｄａｅ）,并代表一新属种弯齿树翼龙（Ｄｅｎｄｒｏｒｈｙｎｃｈｕｓｃｕｒｖｉｄｅｎ－ｔａｔｕｓｇｅｎ．ｅｔｓｐ．ｎｏｖ．）。该化石是我国及东亚晚侏罗世喙嘴龙类翼龙的首次记录,它的发现有力地表明包括中华龙鸟和孔子鸟在内的辽西四合屯化石层的地质时代应为晚侏罗世。     

A New Boreopterid Pterodactyloid Pterosaur from the Early Cretaceous Yixian Formation of Liaoning Province, Northeastern China

<正>A new boreopterid pterosaur:Zhenyuanopterus longirostris gen.et sp.nov.from the Yixian Formation of western Liaoning is erected,based on the complete skeleton with a skull and lower jaws preserved.It is characterized by:a large boreopterid pterosaur with a high number of teeth,where the anterior teeth are much larger than posterior ones;the length of the dorsal + sacral vertebrae is nearly half the length of the skull;ratio of the length of the humerus to metacarpal IV is approximately 91%and the,humerus,femur and third wing phalanx are all equal in length and the feet are specially small.It represents the largest boroepterid pterosaur discovered from western Liaoning and its surrounding areas so far     

A possible azhdarchid pterosaur (Pterosauria,Azhdarchidae) in the Durlston Formation (Early Cretaceous,Berriasian) of southern England

A new specimen of pterosaurian metacarpal IV from the Early Cretaceous (Berriasian) Durlston Formation of Dorset, southern England, closely resembles those of the Chinese dsungaripterid Dsungaripterus weii Young, 1964 and the Central Asian azhdarchid Azhdarcho lancicollis Nessov, 1984. However, the new specimen lacks the thickened bony wall typical of Dsungaripteridae and is therefore regarded as azhdarchoid. An mcIV with a markedly offset distal condyle with well-developed diaphyseal constriction behind the distal condyle and asymmetrical condylar margins may be an autapomorphy of Dsungaripteridae + Azhdarchoidea, while the same condition with bone thickening may typify Dsungaripteridae. The new specimen also provides osteological evidence supporting claims for large wing-spanned pterosaurs in the Berriasian of southern England based previously only on ichnological finds. The new specimen suggests a wingspan of between 2.9 and 3.7 m and represents the largest pterosaur from the Berriasian.     

Did William Smith (1769–1839), the father of biostratigraphy,discover a Jurassic pterosaur tooth?

A partial, isolated tooth from the Middle Jurassic (Bathonian) Stonesfield ‘slate’ of the Taynton Limestone Formation of Oxfordshire is identified as likely coming from a ctenochasmatid pterosaur. Referral to Ctenochasmatidae is based on its very slender, slightly curved crown with near circular cross-section and subparallel margins, slightly inflated root and its stratigraphic age. The tooth is part of the William Smith fossil collection held at the Natural History Museum, London. The collection was assembled as part of William Smith's attempt to identify and map strata around England and Wales in the last decade of the 18th century and the first 15 years of the 19th century. Smith's extensive fossil collection of more than 2500 specimens was purchased by the British Museum in 1816 (Wigley et al., 2018), and thus the specimen is the first pterosaur to be accessioned to the national collection.     

A New Mesopsychid (Mecoptera) from the Middle Jurassic of Northeastern China

The family Mesopsychidae Tillyard,1917 presently consists of ten described genera from the Early Permian to the Early Cretaceous of Australia,China,Kyrgyzstan,Russia,South Africa,Tajikistan,and Ukraine.Herein,a new genus and a new species of fossil mesopsychid,Epicharmesopsyche pentavenulosa gen.et sp.nov.,is described from the Middle Jurassic Jiulongshan Formation of Inner Mongolia,China,supplementing the family-level diversity.The well-preserved,new material reveals many characters,including antennae,wing venation,shape and genitalia that increase our morphological understanding of the family,although unfortunately the mouthparts and most of the legs are not preserved.Diagnosis of the Mesopsychidae is emended to include a four-or five-branched MP in both the fore-and hind wings.This is the first documentation of a wing coupling structure in the Mesopsychidae,consisting of three to four frenula bristles on the humeral lobe at the base of the costal margin of both hind wings.Asymmetrical shape and size of the left and right wings on a specimen of E.pentavenulosa gen.et sp.nov.,seems to be a common condition for mesopsychid taxa from northeastern China.     

An Early Cretaceous fossil bird from Montsec Mountain (Lleida, Spain)

From among fossil fauna and flora specimens discovered in the famous outcrop of lithographic limestone of Montsec Mountain (Lleida, Spain), from the Early Cretaceous, there is one specimen of a small incomplete bird skeleton. Only the bones of the left wing, the wish-bone (furcula), feathers and some other fragmentary bones are preserved. It lacks the skull, backbone, pectoral region, pelvic girdle and hind legs.     

A new Triassic pterosaur from Switzerland (Central Austroalpine, Grisons), Raeticodactylus filisurensis gen. et sp. nov.

A new basal non-pterodactyloid pterosaur, Raeticodactylus filisurensis gen. et sp. nov., is reported. It has been discovered in shallow marine sediments from the Upper Triassic of the lowest Kössen beds (late Norian/early Rhaetian boundary) in the central Austroalpine of Canton Grisons (Switzerland). The disarticulated specimen is comprised of an almost complete skull and a partial postcranial skeleton. A high and thin bony, sagittal cranial crest characterizes the anterodorsal region of the skull. The large mandible, with an additional keel-like expansion at the front, partly matches the enlarged sagittal cranial crest. A direct and close relationship to Austriadactylus cristatus, the only known Triassic pterosaur with a bony cranial crest so far, cannot be established. The teeth of the premaxilla are monocuspid and exhibit very strongly bowed enamel wrinkles on the lingual side whereas the enamel is smooth on the labial side. These monocuspid teeth are large and fang-like. The numerous smaller teeth of the maxilla show three, four and five cusps. These are very similar to the teeth of the Triassic pterosaur Eudimorphodon ranzii. The humerus shows a thinner construction than that seen in other Triassic pterosaurs. The femur is quite unusual with a caput femoris perpendicular to the shaft. The bones of the extremities are almost twice as long as the ones from the largest Triassic specimen E. ranzii (MCSNB 2888). The newly described pterosaur is an adult, with a wingspan of approximately 135 cm. A morphofunctional analysis suggests that R. filisurensis was a highly specialized piscivore and possibly a skim-feeder.     

A New Non-Pterodactyloid Pterosaur from Qinglong County,Hebei Province of China

A new basal non-pterodactyloid pterosaur,Changchengopterus pani gen.et sp.nov.,is erected,on the basis of a nearly complete postcranial skeleton.The new taxon is distinguished by relatively short extensions of the prezygapophyses,postzygapophyses and haemal arches of the caudal vertebrae;a humerus that has a subtriangular deltopectoral crest;limb elements that decrease in length in the following order:ulna>wing-phalange 2>wing-phalange 3=wing-phalange 1>humerus>tibia>femur>wing-metacarpal.Phylogenetic an...     

SEM Observation of the Wing Membrane of Beipiaopterus chenianus (Pterosauria)

The cross-section and surface structures of wing membranes from the ctenochasmatid pterosaur Beipiaopterus chenianus were observed through a scanning electron microscope （SEM）. The results show that the wing membrane contains a high density of blood vessels, implying strong thermoregulatory function, similar to that of a bat wing membrane. This is the first comparison of the microstmctures of pterosaur wing membranes with those of the modem bat. It is inferred that a bat-like physiology exists, at least in relatively small pterosaurs suggesting that these pterosaurs were warm-blooded, active fliers.     

Discovery of the largest pterosaur from South America

A giant humerus (450 mm total length) belonging to one of the largest pterosaur recorded in South America is described. The specimen (UNCUYO-LD 350) was discovered in the Upper Cretaceous (upper Coniacian – lower Santonian) Plottier Formation of the Mendoza Province, northern Neuquén Basin, Argentina. It was found associated with a smaller pterosaur specimen represented by around thirty postcranial bones. The specimen is assigned to Tapejaroidea and show characters of both Tapejaridae and Azhdarchidae. Based on comparisions with other Azdharchidae species, a wingspan of 9.1 m is estimated for UNCUYO-LD 350, showing that giant pterosaurs were present in South America during the Upper Cretaceous.     

A pterosaur humerus and scapulocoracoid from the Jurassic Whitby Mudstone Formation,and the evolution of large body size in early pterosaurs

Early Jurassic pterosaurs are rare and display low diversity with only three well known genera for a period of ∼21 million years duration. The Hettangian-Pliensbachian Dimorphodon reached a wingspan estimated at only 1.3 m, while the Lower Toarcian forms Dorygnathus and Campylognathoides reached wings spans of 1.8 m. Here we describe a new specimen of Toarcian pterosaur from the north east coast of England that may have achieved an estimated wingspan between 1.6 and 3.2 m.