Fossilien No. 87
by Jonathan Blair - © Corbis. All Rights Reserved. - © Jonathan Blair/Corbis
Pterodactylus Kochi Fossil
27 Oct 1999, Munich, Germany --- This Pterodactyulus kochi, one of the most common species of Pterodactylus ever discovered, is also one of the best preserved and most complete Pterodactyls in existence. Discovered in the Solnhofen limestone of Bavaria, Pterodactylus kochi has a wingspan of 18 inches (46 centimeters). Some of the wing membrane is imprinted in the stone around the margin of the pterosaur skeleton. Pterosaurs, the first vertebrates to take to the skies, were thought to be cold-blooded, awkward gliders. Recent fossil evidence, however, shows possible hair-like structures much like the feathers of modern birds. Pterosaurs may have had a warm-blooded metabolism (also called endothermic, or heat generating). Paleontologists credit pterosaurs as agile fliers with uncommon airborne hunting abilities. Pterosaurs used a variety of specialized jaws to dive after fish and insects and of --- Image by © Jonathan Blair/Corbis
