![]() The most incredible physical attribute of Quetzalcoatlus is, without a doubt, it’s wingspan. More recent estimates have been in the realm of 500 pounds. Some estimates have been very low, between 100 and 200 pounds. It’s difficult to speculate about the weight of something that has no modern animal to compare with it. Paleontologists know for sure about the very long limbs of the Quetzalcoatlus and that it was the biggest of the Azhdarchids, but they are less sure about the mass of the dinosaur. Quetzalcoatlus was from the Azhdarchae family, which was a family of especially large pterosaurs in the late Cretaceous period known for their extremely elongated and stiff neck vertabrae and long legs. What did Quetzalcoatlus look like? Quetzalcoatlus Image Courtesy of Flickr User breathedontbreathe Quetzalcoatlus was an Azhdarchid in North America. It’s wingspan is thought to have been as wide as a private jet and it’s height was thought to be taller than a giraffe. However, the reference is still definitely fitting for a creature of such an awesome size. Unlike the figure it was named after, Quetzalcoatlus did not have feathers and was cold-blooded, like all pterosaurs. The deity was associated with the wind and air and depicted by a flying feathered serpent. Lawson named it in 1975 after a god in Central American mythology that was called Quetzalcoatl. ![]() It had the distinguishing honor of being the biggest known flying animal to have ever lived. Quetzalcoatlus, pronounced “KWET-zal-koh-AT-lus” was a huge pterosaur which lived about 65-68 million years ago in the Late Cretaceous period in North America. Quetzalcoatlus is the Largest Flying Pterosaur
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