The very first gliding reptile looks like a dragon, fossils show

Eventually, experts have amassed enough fossils to show that the first reptile to glide resembled a dragon.

Researchers have combed through near-perfect fossils of the world’s first gliding reptile with a fine-toothed comb, unraveling previously unknown facets to discover that a change in tree canopy most likely enabled these creatures to fly.

The unique body parts of Coelurosauravus elivensis have been the subject of intense debate since the animal’s first fossils were found in 1907, raising questions about how the animal lived during the Late Permian Period, 260 million to 252 million years ago, and what its unusual body parts are match.

New research offers new insights into the tetrapod’s habits and morphology, and crucially confirms that it is now the first known gliding reptile, collating enough fossils to create a near-perfect skeletal reconstruction.

The answer to the latter question comes from the forest canopy where this unusual creature lived, according to experts from the Staatliches Museum für Naturkunde Karlsruhe in Germany, as well as the Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle in France and the French National Museum of Natural History in Paris.

Lead author Valentin Buffa, from the Center de Recherche en Paléontologie – Paris at the French Natural History Museum, explains her findings in the peer-reviewed Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, published today. He contends that while taxonomically and vertically heterogeneous, Pennsylvania forests had relatively open canopy layers with spatially distributed arboreal taxa, resulting in little canopy overlap.

In contrast, cisular forests show evidence of more saturated communities, indicating more uninterrupted canopy layers. While several scansorial or arboreal amniotes from Cisularian and Pennsylvania deposits have been described, there have been no reports of gliding before Weigeltisaurids. This change in forest structure may be the cause.

dragon

According to research, these dragons were not even forged in mythological fire; Rather, they just needed a way to travel. Gliding proved to be the most effective means of transportation. Their latest study shows how their morphology made this possible.

Related fossils were examined by the team, including C. elivensis and several other related specimens, all belonging to the Weigeltisauridae family. The postcranial region of the body, which includes the limbs, torso and the remarkable Patagium glider, was the focus of their study. In creatures like sugar gliders, flying squirrels, and colugos, the latter is a membranous flap spanning the front and hind legs.

As with the modern Draco species of Southeast Asia, which never ceases to amaze with its gliding flights from one rainforest tree to another it inhabits, previous research on the reptile assumed that its patagium was supported by a skeletal system distinct from the extends ribs.

Also read: Have these endangered glider marsupials found a new home to live in?

Gliding reptiles

But this exhaustive new study indicates that the patagium of C. elivensis derives from either the trunk musculature or the gastralia, a group of bones in the skin of some reptiles that covers their abdomens, such as B. crocodiles and dinosaurs. Accordingly, the gliding mechanism would rest lower on the abdomen than in contemporary gliding lizards.

Combining this discovery with others gleaned from the bone structure visible in the fossils, scientists developed a more detailed theory of how this agile animal moved through its arboreal habitat.

Buffa added that the idea that the creature was perfectly adapted to easily move vertically up tree trunks is supported by sharp, curved claws and a compressed body shape. The proportional length of the front legs helped the animal stay close to the surface of trees and prevented it from suddenly tipping over and eventually losing its balance. This is another sign that it was an experienced climber.

This interpretation is supported by its long, slender body and whip-like tail, also present in modern arboreal reptiles.

Buffa says that C. elivensis strikingly resembles the modern genus Draco. Although its habits were likely similar to those of its modern equivalent, there are a few minor differences.

Buffa also pointed out that like Draco lizards, Coelurosauravus were able to stabilize and even adjust their patagium during flight, giving them greater maneuverability. However, this ability may have been enhanced by an additional finger joint. This may have been a necessary adjustment for the Patagium’s lower positioning, which likely made it more unstable, reports Science Daily.

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