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Extinct Animal Questions
Topic Started: Nov 26 2013, 10:24 PM (193,469 Views)
CyborgIguana
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Good point, although pterosaurs were powerful flapping fliers, not just gliders.
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stargatedalek
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I'm not slow! That's just my moe!

even still I don't reject the potential that they could have been mesothermic
a few early, smaller species could even have been exothermic

considering how little we know about the direct ancestry of pterosaurs this is a very open topic to interpretation

I personally think they were most likely endothermic, but theres no direct evidence of such
Edited by stargatedalek, Jun 14 2014, 11:33 AM.
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CyborgIguana
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Witton's book might say something about pterosaur metabolisms. I'll check it when I have the time.
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stargatedalek
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I'm not slow! That's just my moe!

please do
I've not been fortunate enough to acquire it ;)
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CyborgIguana
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Witton's book says on page 60 that increased body size heightens the metabolic cost of flapping in all flying animals, so I'm going to assume that at least the larger pterosaurs like azhdarchids were most likely endothermic so they could manage remaining airborne more easily (though since the largest pterosaurs are believed to have spent most of their time soaring on thermals, that may not have been much of an issue).
Edited by CyborgIguana, Jun 14 2014, 05:43 PM.
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stargatedalek
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I'm not slow! That's just my moe!

I would assume that the size at which the most flapping per size would peak would be around ornithocheirus
entirely speculative assumption of course
Edited by stargatedalek, Jun 14 2014, 05:46 PM.
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CyborgIguana
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Of course, Ornithocheirus is believed to have been a glider for the most part anyway.
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stargatedalek
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I'm not slow! That's just my moe!

with that distinctively piscivorous bill I don't doubt it ;)
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CyborgIguana
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Of course, azhdarchids were larger, but considering the fact that their wings were shorter flapping may have been more important to them.
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stargatedalek
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I'm not slow! That's just my moe!

I'd forgotten about that, that would be especially the case with smaller azhdarchids
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heliosphoros
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Actively flying animals have to be endothermic. Mark Witton even drew several pics of endothermic pterosaur ancestors to illustrate that and everything.

Known pterosaurs were obviously endothermic animals, though Rhamphorhynchus had slower growth rates than the average modern endotherm (though given that a living group of living flying vertebrates, the megapod Galliformes, has slow growing rates and is still endothermic, it is not indicative of slower metabolisms).
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CyborgIguana
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Aren't insects ectothermic, though? Not that I disagree with you.
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stargatedalek
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I'm not slow! That's just my moe!

not that I don't think they were endothermic

but I don't agree that there is any direct evidence at all of their being endotherms, I think its all speculation at this point
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CyborgIguana
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True, but the general consensus is that they were endothermic, and they would be more efficient fliers if they were.
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Posted Image Flish
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CyborgIguana
Jun 15 2014, 04:35 PM
Aren't insects ectothermic, though? Not that I disagree with you.
IIRC Insects have some special method of flying that makes them use far less energy than animals normally would. ;)
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