Tag Archives: oceania

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Colossal winged reptile is largest known flying animal ever to live

The bones of an extinct reptile tell a story of how this ancient creature took an 2.4-metre leap of faith in the air to take flight, new research has revealed.

The pterosaur Quetzalcoatlus, the largest known flying animal that ever lived, boasted a 12-metre wingspan that would allow it to soar through the sky, according to a research collection published Wednesday by the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology.

Scientists were puzzled for decades at how such a large creature could fly, said coauthor Matthew Brown, director of vertebrate paleontology collections at The University of Texas in Austin.

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That's one giant reptile. The pterosaur Quetzalcoatlus is depicted in this artist's illustration. (The University of Texas at Austin/Jackson School of Geosciences)

After years of research, Mr Brown's team discovered Quetzalcoatlus likely took to the sky like a fighter jet off an aircraft carrier – punching 2.4 metres off the ground before flapping huge wings.

It took nearly 50 years between the time the bones were discovered in Big Bend National Park in Brewster County, Texas, and when scientists could determine how the creature flew. Mr Brown attributes that to the painstakingly slow process of unearthing the bones.

Like many other flying species during that time, this pterosaur had bones that were hollow to aid in flight, Mr Brown said.

"You have these sort of potato chip-like bones preserved in very hard rock, and you've got to remove the bones from the rock without destroying them," he said.

An artist's impression of the pterosaur.

Two new species are discovered

Over the last half century, two new smaller species of pterosaurs were discovered in the national park as well.

At first, the scientists weren't sure if the animals were juvenile versions of the Quetzalcoatlus or a different species altogether.

The researchers took precise measurements of the fossils and ran them through a computer algorithm. If they didn't come back as near matches to the other animal, it was mostly likely another species, Mr Brown said.

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The Field Museum in Chicago has a life-size pterosaur on display.

The smaller of the two new species has a blunt beak while the larger species has a long, thin, beak that comes to a point.

The animals lived in a forest oasis over 70 million years ago in what is now Texas, which was home to many bodies of water.

The larger Quetzalcoatlus would have likely used its narrow beak to forage for crabs and worms along the water, according to the research collection. This reptile species also tended to hunt alone.

The smaller Quetzalcoatlus was much more social and would spend time in large groups. Researchers found about 30 of the flying animals together at a fossil excavation.

Missing pieces of the fossil

Scientists have fairly complete skeletons of the smaller species, but only a portion of the original Quetzalcoatlus body.

Mr Brown said he wants to pick up where Douglas Lawson, a former geology graduate student at the University of Texas who discovered the original bones in 1971, left off.

One of Brown's personal goals is to obtain a permit and go out into the national park to find the rest of the animal and collect it.

"That would be hugely informative and would really test a lot of our hypothesis about what these big animals look like based on the small ones," Mr Brown said.

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More than 1.5 million Aussies instantly in line for booster

An additional 1.5 million Australians are now eligible to receive their COVID-19 booster shots after they were approved to be administered at the five-month mark.

A booster dose was initially recommended to be given six months after a second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, to ensure greater protection from the virus.

However, the rollout has been brought forward by a month to help stop the spread of the Omicron variant, with the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (ATAGI) backing the decision of the Therapeutic Goods Administration.

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Australians aged 18 and over have the choice to receive either a Pfizer or a Moderna COVID-19 booster shot, irrespective of which vaccine they had previously.

The AstraZeneca vaccine is currently not registered as a booster but remains available to those who cannot have mRNA vaccines.

Federal Secretary of Health Professor Brendan Murphy said the ATAGI had examined the immunity of the vaccines and research found that after six months, protection against COVID-19 had declined.

"There's evidence that by six months there is some declining protection to Omicron and so the ATAGI felt that there was a good reason to get people 'boostered' if possible before that six-month mark," he said.

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Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt said Australia was one of the first countries to roll out a nationwide booster program.

"On the latest advice, it's appropriate, reasonable and safe for somebody to get the booster from five months," he said today.

"By the end of the month, by the start of January, 4.1 million Australians will be eligible to have the booster."

Over 8500 GPs, pharmacies and clinics will be providing either or both Moderna and Pfizer boosters.

Mr Hunt said already 683,000 people across Australia have had their booster shots, which was "well ahead of expectations" and "well ahead of schedule".

The country's vaccination rate sits at 93.3 per cent for first doses and 89.2 per cent for second doses.