Scientist studying shark fossils instead discovers previously unknown winged reptile

[soothsayer]

Link to tweet

?s=21


Miami Herald
@MiamiHerald
Scientist studying shark fossils instead discovers previously unknown winged reptile

miamiherald.com https://t.co/ekDRqj7Zt7?amp=1

Snip

Prehistoric beasts came in all sizes, and paleontologists say they just found one of the runts in the form of a flying reptile about the size of a turkey.

The new species of pterosaur — “the less well-known cousins of dinosaurs” — was discovered by accident when a scientist realized what was thought to be a fish fossil from North Africa was actually a “long slender toothless beak,” according to the University of Portsmouth in the United Kingdom.

Doctoral student Roy Smith is credited with making the find while “examining the fossils of shark spines” stored at two British museums, according to EurekaAlert!, a nonprofit that distributes information for the American Association for the Advancement of Science.