ERTH 2401 Lecture : Lecture14-Chapter 11 Pterosaurs .doc
Document Summary
Flyers: started relatively late requires significant modifications, skeleton, muscles, motor control/brain, warm- blooded animals. What are three levels of flight: glidind/parachuting, body surface increases to provide resistance to air. When was air space conquered: devonian-395 million years ago, animals and plants moved on land, first spores used air space for distribution, insects. Flyers can escape predators predators can capture their prey: almost every group of vertebrate has members with the ability to, fly, glide, soar. Lizards & geckos: membranes along the side of body, draco volans, a flying lizard from southeast asia, ribs extend beyond body, air born for about 15 m. Mammals: bats, flying squirrels & flying lemurs. Flying reptiles have one finger: birds have feathers instead. Flying reptile: appeared at the end oftriassic. Archaeopteryx lithographica solnhofen limestone recent finds in texas place origin of birds back to time of pterosaurs.