Azhdarchidae
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Azhdarchids (from the Uzbek word for "dragon") were a family of pterosaurs known primarily from the Late Cretaceous period which included some of the largest known flying animals of all time. Originally considered a sub-family of Pteranodontidae, Nessov (1984) named the azhdarchinae to include the pterosaurs Azhdarcho, Quetzalcoatlus, and "Titanopteryx" (now known as Arambourgiania). Azhdarchids are characterized by their extremely long necks, made of elongated neck vertebrae which are round in cross section. Most species of azhdarchids are still known mainly from their distinctive neck bones and not much else. The few azhdarchids that are known from reasonably good skeletons include Zheziangopterus, Quetzalcoatlus, and the closely related family Tapejaridae. Azhdarchids are also distinguished by their reletively large heads and spear-like jaws adapted for skimming (Osi et al., 2005). Their wings were short compared to some other pterosaurs, and might have looked disproportionately short in the larger headed, longer necked species.
Classification
Azhdarchids were traditionally classified as close relatives of Pteranodon due to their long, toothless beaks, although some new studies suggest they are more closely related to the toothy Ctenochasmatids (which include filter-feeders like Ctenochasma and Pterodaustro).Taxonomy of Azhdarchids
- Order Pterosauria
- *Suborder Pterodactyloidea
- :*Tanydiroptera
- ::?Pterodactylus
- ::Huanhepterus
- ::*Superfamily Azhdarchoidea
- :::*Family Tapejaridae
- :::*Family Azhdarchidae
- ::::Zhejiangopterus
- ::::Arambourgiania
- ::::Azhdarcho
- ::::Doratorhynchus
- ::::Montanazhdarcho
- ::::Hatzegopteryx
- ::::Quetzalcoatlus
Azhdarchid Species
References
- Astibia, H , Buffetaut, E , Buscalioni, A D , Cappetta, H , Corrall, C , Estes, R , Garcia-Garmilla, F , Jaeger, J J , Jimenez-Fuentes, E, Loeuff, J Le , Mazin, J M , Orue-Etxebarria, X , Pereda-Suberbiola, J , Powell, J E , Rage, J C , Rodriguez-Lazaro, J , Sanz, J L, and Tong, H (1991) The fossil vertebrates from Lafio (Basque Country, Spain); new evidence on the composition and affinities of the Late Cretaceous continental fauna of Europe Terra Nova, 2, 460-466.
- Bennett, S. C. (2000). Pterosaur flight: the role of actinofibrils in wing function. Historical Biology, 14:255-284.
- Nessov, L A (1984) [Upper Cretaceous pterosaurs and birds from Central Asia]. Paleontologicheskii Zhurnal (1), 47-57.
- Nessov, L A (1990) [Flying reptiles of the Jurassic and Cretaceous of the USSR and the significance of their remains for the reconstruction of palaeogeographic conditions]. Bulletin of Leningrad University, Series 7, Geology and Geography 4(28), 3-10 [In Russian].
- Nessov, L A (1991) [Giant flying reptiles of the family Azhdarchidae: 11. Environment, sedirnentological conditions and preservation of remains]. Bulletin of Leningrad Universitv Series 7, Geology and Geography 3(21), 16-24 [In Russian].
- Ősi, A., Weishampel, D.B., and Jianu, C.M. 2005. First evidence of azhdarchid pterosaurs from the Late Cretaceous of Hungary. Acta Palaeontologica Polonica 50 (4): 777–787.
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