By Dean Murray via SWNS
The evolutionary adaptations that allowed ancient pterosaurs to grow to enormous sizes have been pinpointed for the first time.
A new study reveals the ability to walk efficiently on the ground played a crucial role in determining how large the biggest of these flying animals – a cousin of dinosaurs – could grow, with some reaching wingspans of up to 10 meters.
In a new study published in Current Biology, a team of researchers led by the University of Leicester examined the hands and feet of pterosaurs from around the world and across their entire evolutionary history.
Paleontologists in the Centre for Palaeobiology and Biosphere Evolution at the University of Leicester say they uncovered a surprising level of variation similar to that seen across living birds.
This discovery indicates that pterosaurs were not confined to life in the skies but were also adapted to a wide range of terrestrial lifestyles, from tree-climbing in early species to more ground-based lifestyles in later ones.
The evolution of pterosaurs, the earliest vertebrates known to have evolved powered flight, showcases some of the most remarkable adaptations in the history of life.
While these creatures are best known for their ability to soar through the prehistoric skies of the Mesozoic era (252-66 million years ago), the study has revealed a surprisingly high degree of diversity in where and how pterosaurs lived when they were not airborne.
Lead author Robert Smyth, a doctoral researcher in the Centre for Palaeobiology and Biosphere Evolution (School of Geography, Geology and the Environment at the University of Leicester), said: “Early pterosaurs were highly specialized for climbing, with extreme modifications in their hands and feet, similar to those found in climbing lizards and birds like woodpeckers today.
“Clinging to vertical surfaces by your fingertips for long periods is hard work — it’s a lot easier for small, lightweight animals.”
These early pterosaurs were likely restricted to arboreal habitats and consequently, small body sizes. However, a major evolutionary shift occurred during the Middle Jurassic period, when pterosaur hands and feet changed to look much more like those of ground-dwelling animals.
These adaptations to ground-based movement opened up new ecological opportunities, leading to a wide variety of feeding strategies. Freedom from the size constraints imposed by vertical living allowed some pterosaurs to evolve to gigantic sizes with wingspans of up to 10 meters.
Co-author Dr. David Unwin from the University of Leicester added: “In early pterosaurs, the hind limbs were connected by a flight membrane which severely impeded walking and running. In later, more advanced pterosaurs, this membrane became separated along the midline, allowing each hind limb to move independently. This was a key innovation that, combined with changes to their hands and feet, greatly improved pterosaurs’ mobility on the ground.
“Freed from the constraints of climbing, these later pterosaurs could grow to enormous sizes, with some species becoming true giants of the Mesozoic.”
When pterosaurs arrived on the ground, it was already inhabited by a wide range of animals, including dinosaurs and many other reptiles.
Pterosaurs cleverly avoided competition with these established groups by exploiting ecological niches that required both flying and walking abilities. This resulted in some bizarre feeding strategies such as evolving hundreds of fine, needle-like teeth that were used for filter-feeding.
This remarkable feature, resembling the feeding method of modern flamingos, emerged at least 120 million years before the first flamingos evolved.
