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Pterosaur integumentary structures with complex feather-like branching.

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Pterosaurs, the first flying vertebrates, had feather-like pycnofibres, challenging previous assumptions about their evolution and function. These structures suggest roles in thermoregulation, sensing, signaling, and aerodynamics.

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Area of Science:

  • Paleontology
  • Evolutionary Biology
  • Vertebrate Zoology

Background:

  • Pterosaurs were the first vertebrates to evolve flapping flight.
  • The integumentary coverings of pterosaurs, called pycnofibres, are poorly understood, with reconstructions often depicting them as fur-like.
  • The exact affinities and functions of pycnofibres remain enigmatic.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the morphology and affinities of pycnofibres in anurognathid pterosaurs.
  • To determine if pterosaur pycnofibres share characteristics with dinosaurian feathers.
  • To understand the potential functions of these feather-like structures in pterosaurs.

Main Methods:

  • Microscopic examination of pycnofibres in two anurognathid pterosaur specimens.
  • Analysis of pycnofibre morphology, including filament structure and branching patterns.
  • Identification and characterization of preserved melanosomes within the pycnofibres.

Main Results:

  • Preservation of morphologically diverse pycnofibres with features diagnostic of feathers.
  • Identification of non-vaned grouped filaments and bilaterally branched filaments, previously thought unique to maniraptoran dinosaurs.
  • Discovery of melanosomes with varied geometries within the pycnofibres.

Conclusions:

  • Pterosaur pycnofibres exhibit feather-like characteristics, suggesting either deep evolutionary origins of feathers in archosaurs or independent evolution in pterosaurs.
  • The presence of these structures indicates anurognathids and potentially other pterosaurs had filamentous coverings.
  • These feather-like structures likely served multiple functions, including thermoregulation, tactile sensing, signaling, and aerodynamics.