This pterosaur supported its giant neck with bones built like bicycle wheels

This pterosaur supported its giant neck with bones built like bicycle wheels

3 years ago
Anonymous $4BDEsVAtYS

http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2021/04/pterosaur-supported-its-giant-neck-bones-built-bicycle-wheels

An internal computerized tomography scan of an azhdarchid pterosaur neck bone shows several spokes, which might have allowed them to support their long necks and lift prey.

About 100 million years ago, gigantic flying reptiles with necks longer than those of giraffes cruised the skies of modern-day Morocco. Scientists think this kind of pterosaur, with its large jaw and slim neck, preyed on fish, small mammals, and even baby dinosaurs. But how their necks didn’t snap as they carried their prey has long been a mystery. Now, a new study shows that the bones inside had an intricate spokelike structure that made them strong and stable, but light enough for flight.