Recent discoveries in Southern Germany of a pterodactyl with some particularly peculiar teeth have provided new insights into the habits and food of these extinct flying reptiles.
Artist’s impression of Balaenognathus maeuseri (Artwork by Megan Jacobs)
Balaenognathus maeuseri, a pterosaur (Greek for "winged lizard"), is described as stalking through prehistoric swamps and using freaky denticles to filter-feed on shrimp, small crustaceans, and other tasty snacks. The study was published in the German journal Paläontologische Zeitschrift. This B. maeuseri passed away next to a settlement in Wattendorf, Bavaria, 152 million years ago, during the Jurassic era, when Germany was best renowned for its castles, alpine beauty, and beer. But the layered limestone of Bavaria's basin also contains an incredible fossil treasure trove. Because it is laid in flat sheets that intricately preserve fossils in incredibly fine detail, the limestone is sometimes referred to as laminated or plattenkalk.
Numerous species, including extinct fish like coelacanths and theropod dinosaurs, have been discovered in the plattenkalk. In fact, it was from this area that the first pterosaur fossil was ever discovered. Cosimo Alessandro Collini, a historian and scientist, was the first to describe a pterosaur in 1784. This fossil was heaved from the same type of Bavarian limestone as B. maeuseri. One of the first academics in the Age of Enlightenment to recognize fossils as the petrified relics of previous eras was Collini, who had earlier served as Voltaire's secretary. Fossils were widely believed to be proof of the biblical account of the Genesis flood at the time.
The bones of Balaenognathus maeuseri, found in the slab of limestone. (Photo courtesy of PalZ)
However, Collini was absolutely baffled by this animal and believed it to be a sea monster resembling a bat. It wasn't recognized as a flying reptile until Georges Cuvier, a French paleontologist, appeared on the scene. Approximately 240 years later, we continue to learn awe-inspiring new things about Bavarian pterosaurs. B. maeuseri, however, is a whole new species.
David Martill, a professor of paleobiology at the University of Portsmouth and the study's principal author, described "the pterosaur's long, narrow, hooked teeth as having tiny spaces between them similar to a nit comb. The long jaw widens out like a spoonbill at the end and is curled upward like an avocet. Although its mouth is toothless at the back, both jaws are covered in teeth from the front to the back of its smile."
Martill continued, "What's even more amazing is some of the teeth have a hook on the end, which we've never seen in a pterosaur ever. These tiny hooks would have been used to snag the tiny shrimp that the pterosaur most likely consumed, ensuring that they passed down its throat rather than becoming caught between the teeth."
The teeth look like mealworm bodies or spindly plant roots up close. The specimen has roughly 480 of these, which together form a grid resembling the massive baleen plates found in the jaws of some whales. Baleen, which is frequently yellowish-white in color, is actually made of keratin, the same material that makes up your hair and nails. Baleen whales filter the water out through their baleen after gulping down water filled with marine life. Whatever remains behind—crabs, shrimp, fish, or anything else—becomes food for the whale.
Fig.A: UV close-up of the tooth section at the narrowest point of the funnel. Fig.B: tooth preservation shown in the interpretative drawing of an isolated tooth. (Photo courtesy of PalZ)
B. maeuseri most likely acquired its food in a manner similar to that described above, but also more flamingo-like, by rippling warily through the shallows, slurping up mouthfuls of lagoon water, and filtering out the pond scum. Even the first half of its name, Balaenognathus, which alludes to this feeding method and meaning "whale jaw," The maeuseri portion honors Matthias Mäuser, one of the co-authors who departed away while the work was being written.
Since there is only one example of B. maeuseri in the fossil record (which is not unusual for a whole extinct species), this specimen was almost completely overlooked.
The specimen was unintentionally discovered as a sizable limestone block containing ancient crocodile bones was being moved. However, it was already fractured into a slab of 17 pieces when it was found. Small pieces of the material were "prospected" at night under UV illumination. It's a good thing that this specific limestone preserves so well because it usually had clean splits and wasn't hard to put back together. There are only a few fingers missing. However, as the authors put it, several of the teeth "popped off" during processing and had to be glued back in. The skeleton is extremely preserved other from that. This poor pterodactyl has undoubtedly endured a lot.
