Paleontologists from the University of Portsmouth have discovered how some pterosaurs managed to cope with
The authors of the new study suspect this "lightweight" design provided strength without compromising the pterosaurs' ability to fly.
Previously, scientists believed that the cervical vertebraepterosaurs had a simpler, tubular structure. This made them wonder - how thin-walled bones (light bones are necessary for flying animals to lose weight) are able to support a large head with prey in addition?
The researchers originally set out to study the shape and movement of the pterosaur's neck, but used CT to look inside the remains.
Scientists believe the complex design could help engineers design longer, thinner, and stronger lightweight structures.
Pterosaurs appeared in the fossil record of the Triassic period, about 225 million years ago, but disappeared at the end of the Cretaceous period, about 66 million years ago, along with their fellow dinosaurs.
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