200 million year-old jawbone revealed as new species
The newly discovered flying reptile is the oldest pterosaur in North America.
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The jawbone of the ancient reptile was unearthed in Arizona back in 2011, but modern scanning techniques have now revealed details showing that it belongs to a species new to science.
The research team, led by scientists at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History in Washington DC, has named the creature Eotephradactylus mcintireae, meaning "ash-winged dawn goddess".
It is a reference to the volcanic ash that helped preserve its bones in an ancient riverbed.
Details of the discovery are published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cqx2zzn53pqo
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