Experts have figured out how a planning reptile moved by reconstructing its skeleton. The results are published in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology.
While most ancient reptiles crawled, ran, and jumped, one creature preferred to fly through the air, or rather, to glide. In a new study, scientists have figured out exactly how. It turned out that the tiny, “dragon-like” Coelurosauravus elivensis used a pair of patagiales, thin webbing that extended from its torso to its front limbs, forming a wing-like structure.
According to a statement, researchers at the French National Museum of Natural History in Paris called the creature “the world’s first gliding reptile.”
In 1907, scientists discovered the first fossils of C. elivensis. It was about 10 cm long, about the length of a human hand. Despite its small size, it is called the “flying dragon. Since then, paleontologists have tried to understand how this species evolved to glide through forested habitats in the Late Permian period (260 to 252 million years ago). The authors of the new study believe they have solved the mystery using data on the structure of tree crowns in the ancient ecosystem of this unique reptile.
The experts found out how the planning reptile moved by reconstructing its skeleton. To do this, they used fossils of three individuals that paleontologists had collected over the years in different locations.
Before the reconstruction, scientists were unsure of the exact location of the patagials on the animal’s body. Now the authors of the study have suggested that the winged structures were most likely located at the bottom of the species’ torso. They extended from the gastralia – the abdominal “ribs”. Recall – this is part of the skin skeleton, elongated bony formations located in the tendon layers of the abdominal muscles in some modern reptiles. Scientists determined this by the position of the bones, as the soft tissue of the patagiales was not preserved in any of the specimens.
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