Aussiedraco illustration, by Franz Anthony on Pteros.com
Aussiedraco is a medium-sized pterodactyloid pterosaur from the Toolebuc Formation in Australia. It lived during the Early Cretaceous and is known from an incredibly fragmentary skeleton.
Discovery[]
Aussiedraco was first discovered in the 1970s. The fossils consisted of the tip of a pterosaur beak found in Queensland, Australia. The fossils were later described in the 1980s but not given an official name until 2011. Aussiedraco's name translates to "Australian dragon", while the species name, molnari, refers to one of the scientists that described it.
Description[]
Aussiedraco size comparison (Pteros.com)
Since Aussiedraco's fossils are incredibly fragmentary, a lot of its appearance is guesswork. Structurally, it is believed to have looked similar to Ornithocheirus and Anhanguera. The beak contained teeth, most likely used for snatching fish and squid-like cephalopods from the sea. Its upper jaw had a small keel, which may have formed a crest for display or stabilizer when its beak was in the water.
This flying reptile wasn't very large, with an estimated skull size of around 24 inches (61 cm) and wingspan of 10 feet (3 m). Like its close relatives, it was probably covered in a fuzzy coat of pycnofibers, which would have worked in a similar manner as feathers, keeping the animal warm.
Aussiedraco was discovered in what is now the Toolebuc Formation in Queensland. It lived alongside the ankylosaur Kunbarrasaurus, ornithopod Muttaburrasaurus, ornithocheirid Mythunga, plesiosaur Eromangasaurus, and pliosaur Kronosaurus.
Classification[]
Aussiedraco is currently classified as a Targaryendraconid. This family of pterosaurs lived from the Early to Late Cretaceous and are found in South America, Europe, and Australia. Its close relatives are Barbosania and Targaryendraco, with more distant relatives including Aetodactylus, Anhanguera, and Tropeognathus.