Quetzalcoatlus
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Quetzalcoatlus was named after the Aztec feathered serpent God Quetzalcoatl. It was a pterodactyloid pterosaur known from the Late Cretaceous Period, in North America about 84-65 million years ago. Quetzalcoatlus is known of the largest know flying animals of all time.
The original remains of Quetzalcoatlus, which were unEarthed in 1971, consists of wing bones built on gigantic scale. By comparing these with complete skeletons of smaller species, estimates of its wingspan have ranged as high as 50 feet (15 meters) in length. Unlike most pterosaurs, Quetzalcoatlus probably lived inland, and it would have known largely by soaring, like a living glider. It possessed a long, toothless beak, which suggests that it was probably a scavenger, although it may also have caught animals on the ground.
Image coutesy of Joe Tucciarone
