Monday, October 12, 2015

October unleashed. Bakonydraco

To date not much can be revealed about Bakonydraco other than it was almost certainly an azdarchid pterosaur,‭ ‬the group known for having proportionately long necks that also features some of the largest known pterosaurs such as Quetzalcoatlus and Hatzegopteryx.‭ ‬Bakonydraco did still differ from many other azdarchids however by having what appears to have been a tall,‭ ‬deep beak.‭ ‬This has implied a possibly piscivorous specialisation as opposed to a more general carnivore.‭ ‬It has also been suggested that Bakonydraco may have also been a frugivore,‭ ‬feeding upon the fruit from plants.
       Another potential specialisation can be seen in the way that the lower jaw came together towards the tip.‭ ‬The mandible of Bakonydraco is made up of two halves like in other pterosaurs,‭ ‬and indeed most other creatures,‭ ‬but the front half is fused together.‭ ‬When fused the halves also become laterally compressed giving Bakonydraco a flattened‭ '‬spear tip‭' ‬appearance to its front jaw.‭ ‬It is hard to see with certainty how this adaptation helped Bakonydraco as its function is more down to how you interpret it.‭ ‬If Bakonydraco ate fish,‭ ‬the narrow jaw would have reduced water resistance allowing for faster and more precise strikes at prey.‭ ‬Alternatively if Bakonydraco was a frugivore the narrow jaw may have allowed Bakonydraco to pick fruit without the bulk of a larger beak pushing branches out of reach.

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