Nurhachius

Nurhachius had a very long skull, about 33 centimetres long, and its skull had a huge opening that took up about 58% of the skull length.1

It had 54 teeth in total: 14 on each side of the upper jaw and 13 on each side of the lower jaw. These teeth were flat and triangular, similar to those of the European pterosaur Istiodactylus.1

Nurhachius was one of the first pterosaurs from its group, the istiodactylids, to be found in China. Before that, this group was only known from Europe.2

The fossil skeleton of Nurhachius shows it was a subadult, meaning it was not fully grown when it died. Its bones show that some parts were still growing.1

Nurhachius lived in an area where many birds also lived, like Confuciusornis. Scientists think birds were more common in inland areas, while pterosaurs like Nurhachius were more common near the coast.2

The name Nurhachius honors Nurhachi, the founder of the Qing Dynasty in China. The species name ignaciobritoi honors a Brazilian paleontologist named Ignacio M. Brito.1