Pterosaurs: Fur flies over feathery fossils
Source: BBC
Pterosaurs: Fur flies over feathery fossils
By Helen Briggs
BBC News
17 December 2018
Two exceptionally well preserved fossils give a new picture of the pterosaurs, the flying reptiles that lived at the time of the dinosaurs.
Scientists believe the creatures may have had feathers, and looked something like brown bats with fuzzy wings.
The surprise discovery suggests feathers evolved not in birds, nor dinosaurs, but in more distant times.
Pterosaurs were the closest relatives of dinosaurs, sharing a common ancestor about 250 million years ago.
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The researchers found that the pterosaurs had four different kinds of covering, including fuzzy, fur over most of their body; and, on parts of the head and wings, three types of fibres similar to modern feathers.
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Read more: https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-46572782
What pterosaurs might have looked like
Are these feathers?