How did a biplane-sized dinosaur take off?

The Quetzalcoatlus has a wingspan as long as a double-decker bus. It is the largest animal that has ever flown. But how he did this has long been a mystery.

For a long time, experts were unable to figure out how a giant dino with wings as tall as a giraffe managed to soar into the sky. A team of researchers from the University of Texas believe they have found the answer.

Fifty years ago, a specimen of this dinosaur species was found in Big Bend National Park, but much research had not been done on the bones until recently. The bones have now been thoroughly studied. Combining this knowledge with other findings, the researchers managed to almost completely assemble a smaller specimen of the animal – with a wingspan of 5 meters.

Both dinosaurs must have lived around 70 million years ago. The smaller species probably lived and hunted in groups and the larger ones alone, much like a heron, near streams and rivers.

But how did the animal fly away? A run-up would not have worked, the researchers think. Then its wings would have touched the ground, or the surrounding bushes and trees. He must have succeeded thanks to his two very strong legs. With that, he would have jumped about three meters into the air and then let that massive 10-meter-wide wing spring into action.

Thanks to: Paleontologists discover how a pterosaur the size of a double-decker bus was able to fly†

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