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THE FLYING VERTEBRATES
~220 million yearsPterosaurs (from the Greek pterosauros, meaning "winged lizard", often referred to as pterodactyls, from the Greek pterodaktulos, meaning "winged finger") were flying reptiles of the clade or order Pterosauria . They existed from the late Triassic to the end of the Cretaceous Period (220 to 65.5 million years ago). Pterosaurs are the earliest vertebrates known to have evolved powered flight. Their wings were formed by a membrane of skin, muscle, and other tissues stretching from the legs to a dramatically lengthened fourth finger. Early species had long, fully-toothed jaws and long tails, while later forms had a highly reduced tail, and some lacked teeth. Many sported furry coats made up of hair-like filaments known as pycnofibres, which covered their bodies and parts of their wings. Pterosaurs spanned a wide range of adult sizes, from the very small Nemicolopterus to the largest known flying creatures of all time, including Quetzalcoatlus and Hatzegopteryx. (click to see all the article on Wikipedia)
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