Researchers led by Curtin University have identified fossilized bones of a massive flying dinosaur, Haliskia peterseni, in western Queensland, Australia.
Unearthed in 2021 by Kevin Petersen, curator at Kronosaurus Korner Museum, this find represents the most complete pterosaur skeleton ever discovered in Australia.
Haliskia peterseni is a newly identified species of anhanguerian pterosaur, a formidable flying reptile that soared the skies about 100 million years ago during the Early Cretaceous period.
This era saw much of central western Queensland submerged under a vast inland sea, globally positioned roughly where Victoria's southern coastline is today.
JEFF PACHOUD/AFP via Getty Images
Complete Fossil of a Massive Flying Dinosaur
PhD student Adele Pentland from Curtin's School of Earth and Planetary Sciences led the research team that identified the specimen. "With a wingspan of approximately 4.6 meters, Haliskia would have been a fearsome predator around 100 million years ago," Pentland said in a press release.
The fossil's completeness is remarkable; at 22 percent, it is more than twice as complete as any other pterosaur skeleton found in Australia.
The fossil includes complete lower jaws, the tip of the upper jaw, 43 teeth, vertebrae, ribs, bones from both wings, part of a leg, and very thin, delicate throat bones indicating a muscular tongue, which aided in feeding on fish and cephalopods.
These unique features, such as the crest on its upper jaw, curved teeth, and specific shoulder bone structure, identify Haliskia as part of the Anhangueria group of pterosaurs. This group has been known to inhabit various parts of the world, including Brazil, England, Morocco, China, Spain, and the United States.
Petersen's meticulous preparation of the remains has provided an invaluable specimen for scientific study. "Careful preparation by Mr. Petersen has provided the remains of the most complete specimen of an anhanguerian, and of any pterosaur, discovered in Australia to date," Pentland noted.
Phylogenetic analyses conducted to understand the evolutionary relationships of Haliskia revealed its close ties to other pterosaurs like Ferrodraco and Mythunga.
These analyses suggest that the Anhangueria group was more diverse and widespread in Australia during the Early Cretaceous period than previously thought, highlighting a more complex evolutionary history for these flying reptiles.
The Kronosaurus Korner museum now houses Haliskia peterseni alongside other significant marine fossil specimens, such as Kronosaurus queenslandicus, the largest known marine reptile with a skull at least 2.4 meters long, the most complete plesiosaur from Australia, and bones from the plesiosaur Eromangasaurus and the ichthyosaur Platypterygius.
The discovery of Haliskia peterseni fills significant gaps in the study of pterosaurs from eastern Gondwana, the supercontinent that included present-day Australia. While pterosaur fossils are relatively common in the western parts of Gondwana, such as South America, they are rare in the east, making this find particularly important.
