Pterosaurs: dragons of the air

Finished model

This is what we think Quetzalcoatlus looked like. There are many aspects of the model we are uncertain about, but we think it is closer than previous efforts. The finished models here are the culmination of years of detective work – collating evidence from scraps of bones and data from other smaller pterosaurs, and studying the rocks in which the fossils are found. We have examined footprints attributed to pterosaurs and experimented with models in flume tanks and wind tunnels, but the next discovery could, and may change our ideas.

Acknowledgement

The Palaeobiology Research Group at the University of Portsmouth, which includes Bob Loveridge, Mark Witton and Dave Martill, are especially grateful to Bob and Jack Rushton, and to Griffon Hoverworks Ltd on the Isle of Wight for their tremendous support and technical input to this project.