Dino card No. 0037 of 2,027

Aetodactylus

Say it: ee-TOE-dak-TYE-lus

Name means: “eagle finger”1

Ate: FishFlying reptilesLate CretaceousNot technically a dinosaur

Aetodactylus was a flying reptile that lived near the sea about 97 million years ago. It had a long, slender jaw with many pointed teeth, perfect for catching fish. This pterosaur was one of the last of its kind before they disappeared.1 3

Fun fact: pterosaurs flew over the dinosaurs, but they were their cousins, not dinosaurs themselves.

Lived

100 to 94 million years ago3

Late Cretaceous

Fossils found in

Texas, USA1 3

Food

Fish3 1

Wingspan

2.7 to 3 m2

estimate

When did it live?

Triassic

Jurassic

Cretaceous

252 million years ago20114566, the asteroid

How big was it?

How wide were its wings?

wings as wide as 1.5 bicycles in a row

How big was Aetodactylus compared to YOU?

Just maths in your browser. Nothing is saved or sent anywhere.

cool stuff

Fun facts

Aetodactylus is known from only a single lower jaw, which is 38.4 centimeters (15.1 inches) long.1

The jaw has 27 pairs of tooth sockets, but only two teeth were preserved when it was found.1

Its teeth were pointed, curved slightly backward, and flattened from side to side, like little daggers.1

Unlike some other pterosaurs, Aetodactylus did not have a bony crest on its lower jaw.1

The tip of its jaw was slightly wider than the rest, and the first pair of teeth pointed forward.1

Aetodactylus lived during the Middle Cenomanian age, about 97 million years ago, in what is now Texas.1 3

Scientists think Aetodactylus was closely related to Cimoliopterus and belongs to a group called Targaryendraconia.1

AI-made picture of Aetodactylus — An AI-made picture of how Aetodactylus might have looked, made by a computer from what scientists know. It is a guess: the real animal may have looked different, and nobody knows its true colours.

you asked

Most asked questions about Aetodactylus

?Was Aetodactylus a dinosaur?

No, Aetodactylus was a pterosaur, a flying reptile, not a dinosaur. It belonged to a group of flying reptiles often called pterodactyls.2

?How big was Aetodactylus?

Its wingspan was about 3 meters (9.8 feet), making it a medium sized pterosaur. The only known fossil is a lower jaw that is 38.4 centimeters (15.1 inches) long.2 1

?What did Aetodactylus eat?

It likely ate fish. Its long, slender jaw was full of pointed teeth, and it lived near the sea, possibly catching fish while flying over the water.2 1

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For dino experts

Scientific name: Aetodactylus
Named by: Myers 20103
Group: Flying reptiles
Family / clade: Ornithocheiridae3
Classification: Pterosauria > Pterodactyloidea3
Age of the rocks: 100 to 94 million years (Cenomanian)3
Rock formations: Tarrant3
Countries: USA3
Fossil records: 1 in the Paleobiology Database3
Discovery: The only known fossil of Aetodactylus was found in 2006 by Lance Hall near a construction site at Joe Pool Lake in Mansfield, Texas. It was named by Timothy S. Myers in 2010, and the species name halli honors the discoverer.1 3
Still debated: Scientists are not sure exactly how big Aetodactylus was, because only its lower jaw has been found.1

Where the facts come from

Aetodactylus (en.wikipedia.org)
Rare 95-million-year-old flying reptile Aetodactylus halli is new pterosaur genus, species | EurekAlert! (eurekalert.org)
Aetodactylus in The Paleobiology Database (CC BY 4.0): age, places, rock formations, classification.

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