In a massive discovery in the field of palaeontology, scientists in Argentina have dug up a huge flying reptile that soared in the sky around 86 million years ago. The massive reptile dubbed ‘The Dragon of Death’ lived on Earth alongside the dinosaurs and was as big as a school bus in size.
Measuring around 30 feet or 9 meters in length, the massive reptile was a predator whose diet comprised of birds. Flying reptiles are also called pterosaurs. Scientists suggest they were among Earth’s first flying hunters.
The fossil named Thanatosdrakon amaru was dug up by scientists in the Andes mountains located in the western Mendoza province of in Argentina. It was preserved in rocks from the Cretaceous period, dating back to 86 million years.
A palaeontologist works on excavation of bones and fossils of the newly discovered species Thanatosdrakon Amaru | Photo: Reuters
Ruling the prehistoric skies
As per the estimate of the age of the fossil, the creature was alive 20 million years before the massive extinction 66 million years ago that resulted due to a massive asteroid collision.
A whole new category was required to name the unique reptile with features that have never been witnessed before. So, scientists have come up with a new genus and species name which is a mixture of the Greek words for death (Thanatos) and dragon (drakon).
“It seemed appropriate to name it that way. It's the dragon of death,” Project leader Leonardo Ortiz was quoted by Reuters as saying.
The study on the reptile was published in the scientific journal Cretaceous Research in April 2021. It’s massive structure means that the Dragon of Death is the largest flying reptile unearthed in South America and also among the largest anywhere in the world.
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