Wellnhopterus
Wellnhopterus was a flying reptile that lived in Texas during the time of the dinosaurs. It had a short, blunt beak and a stocky neck, making it look different from its cousin Quetzalcoatlus. It soared over the land hunting for food.1
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Fun facts
Wellnhopterus had a wingspan of about 3 metres (9 feet 10 inches), making it a mid-sized pterosaur.1
Its blunt snout and shorter, sturdier neck were very different from the long, slender jaws of its relative Quetzalcoatlus.1
Scientists think Wellnhopterus was a raptorial hunter, meaning it may have caught relatively large prey compared to its size.1
The fossils were first thought to belong to Quetzalcoatlus, but later studies showed they were a different animal.1
Wellnhopterus lived about 72 to 66 million years ago, during the Maastrichtian age of the Late Cretaceous.2
Its name honors German paleontologist Peter Wellnhofer, who first illustrated the fossil in 1991.1
Most asked questions about Wellnhopterus
?Was Wellnhopterus a dinosaur?
No, Wellnhopterus was a pterosaur, which is a flying reptile and not a dinosaur.1
?How big was Wellnhopterus?
It had a wingspan of about 3 metres (9.8 feet), making it a mid-sized pterosaur.1
?What did Wellnhopterus eat?
Scientists think it was a raptorial hunter, meaning it may have caught relatively large prey compared to its size.1
?When did Wellnhopterus live?
It lived about 72 to 66 million years ago, during the Maastrichtian age of the Late Cretaceous.1
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Myth buster
Myth: Some people thought Wellnhopterus was a type of Quetzalcoatlus.
Truth: Scientists now know it was a separate genus, with a shorter beak and neck, and it was named Wellnhopterus in 2021.1
For dino experts
- Scientific name
- Wellnhopterus
- Named by
- Andres and Langston 20213
- Group
- Flying reptiles
- Family / clade
- Azhdarchidae3
- Classification
- Pterosauria > Pterodactyloidea > Azhdarchidae3
- Age of the rocks
- 72 to 66 million years (Maastrichtian)3
- Rock formations
- Javelina3
- Countries
- USA3
- Fossil records
- 1 in the Paleobiology Database3
- Discovery
- The fossils were found in March 1986 by Robert Rainey in Big Bend National Park, Texas. They were named Wellnhopterus brevirostris by Brian Andres and Wann Langston Jr. in 2021.1
- Still debated
- Scientists are not sure exactly where Wellnhopterus fits in the azhdarchid family tree. Some place it in the Quetzalcoatlinae group, while others think it is more primitive.1
Where the facts come from
- Wellnhopterus (en.wikipedia.org)
- PBDB Taxon (paleobiodb.org)
- Wellnhopterus in The Paleobiology Database (CC BY 4.0): age, places, rock formations, classification.
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Pteranodon
Quetzalcoatlus
Dorygnathus
Rhamphorhynchus
Anhanguera
Pterodactylus
Tyrannosaurus
Triceratops
Velociraptor
Spinosaurus
Ankylosaurus
Parasaurolophus