Eggshell and Histology Provide Insight on the Life History of a Pterosaur with Two Functional Ovaries

Wang, Xiaolin; Kellner, Alexander W. A.; Cheng, Xuewu; Jiang, Shunxing; Wang, Qiang; Sayão, Juliana Manso; Rodrigues, Taissa; Costa, Fabiana Rodrigues; Li, Ning; Meng, Xiuxiang; Zhou, Zhonghe

doi:10.1590/0001-3765201520150364

Cited by 24 publications

(29 citation statements)

References 28 publications

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“…To date, embryos and/or eggs have been reported in four species of pterosaur representing three distinct Late Jurassic -Early Cretaceous clades ( [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8]; electronic supplementary material, table S1). These finds have provided critical insights into the reproductive biology of pterosaurs which, as in basal amniotes, seems to have involved paired ovaries, relatively small, ovoidal, pliable-shelled eggs and incubation via burial in substrate rather than bodily contact [4,5,7]. It has generally been assumed that hatchlings were altricial and required extended parental care before achieving flight, as in extant species of bats and many birds [8][9][10][11][12][13].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Prenatal development in pterosaurs and its implications for their postnatal locomotory ability

Unwin

Deeming

2019

Proc. R. Soc. B.

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Recent fossil finds in China and Argentina have provided startling new insights into the reproductive biology and embryology of pterosaurs, Mesozoic flying reptiles. Nineteen embryos distributed among four species representing three distinct clades have been described and all are assumed to be at, or near, term. We show here how the application of four contrasting quantitative approaches allows a more precise identification of the developmental status of embryos revealing, for the first time to our knowledge, the presence of middle and late developmental stages as well as individuals that were at term. We also identify a predicted relationship between egg size and shape and the developmental stage of embryos contained within. Small elongate eggs contain embryos at an earlier stage of development than larger rounder eggs which contain more fully developed embryos. Changes in egg shape and size probably reflect the uptake of water, consistent with a pliable shell reported for several pterosaurs. Early ossification of the vertebral column, limb girdles and principal limb bones involved some heterochronic shifts in appearance times, most notably of manus digit IV, and facilitated full development of the flight apparatus prior to hatching. This is consistent with a super-precocial flight ability and, while not excluding the possibility of parental care in pterosaurs, suggests that it was not an absolute requirement.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Prenatal development in pterosaurs and its implications for their postnatal locomotory ability

Unwin

Deeming

2019

Proc. R. Soc. B.

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“…Aerodynamic models of bone strength analyses and wing-loading forces have revealed that pterosaurs potentially flew with high manoeuvrability (Palmer, 2011;Habib & Hall, 2012;Habib & Witton, 2013), and likely utilised energy-efficient quadrupedal take-offs (Habib, 2008). Pterosaur phylogeny (Kellner, 2003;Unwin, 2003;Lü et al, 2010;Andres, Clark & Xu 2014), ground-based behaviours elucidated from trace fossils (ichnofossils) (Hwang et al, 2002;Xing et al, 2012;Fiorillo et al, 2015) and reproductive biology (Chiappe et al, 2004;Grellet-Tinner et al, 2007;Lü et al, 2011a;Wang et al, 2015Wang et al, , 2017 have also seen major advances. One area of pterosaur research lagging behind, however, is understanding of their dietary ecology (Unwin & Henderson, 2002;Hone, 2012;Hone et al, 2015a).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pterosaur dietary hypotheses: a review of ideas and approaches

et al. 2018

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Pterosaurs are an extinct group of Mesozoic flying reptiles, whose fossil record extends from approximately 210 to 66 million years ago. They were integral components of continental and marginal marine ecosystems, yet their diets remain poorly constrained. Numerous dietary hypotheses have been proposed for different pterosaur groups, including insectivory, piscivory, carnivory, durophagy, herbivory/frugivory, filter-feeding and generalism. These hypotheses, and subsequent interpretations of pterosaur diet, are supported by qualitative (content fossils, associations, ichnology, comparative anatomy) and/or quantitative (functional morphology, stable isotope analysis) evidence. Pterosaur dietary interpretations are scattered throughout the literature with little attention paid to the supporting evidence. Reaching a robustly supported consensus on pterosaur diets is important for understanding their dietary evolution, and their roles in Mesozoic ecosystems. A comprehensive examination of the pterosaur literature identified 314 dietary interpretations (dietary statement plus supporting evidence) from 126 published studies. Multiple alternative diets have been hypothesised for most principal taxonomic pterosaur groups. Some groups exhibit a high degree of consensus, supported by multiple lines of evidence, while others exhibit less consensus. Qualitative evidence supports 87.3% of dietary interpretations, with comparative anatomy most common (62.1% of total). More speciose groups of pterosaur tend to have a greater range of hypothesised diets. Consideration of dietary interpretations within alternative phylogenetic contexts reveals high levels of consensus between equivalent monofenestratan groups, and lower levels of consensus between equivalent non-monofenestratan groups. Evaluating the possible non-biological controls on apparent patterns of dietary diversity reveals that numbers of dietary interpretations through time exhibit no correlation with patterns of publication (number of peer-reviewed publications through time). 73.8% of dietary interpretations were published in the 21st century. Overall, consensus interpretations of pterosaur diets are better accounted for by non-biological signals, such as the impact of the respective quality of the fossil record of different pterosaur groups on research levels. That many interpretations are based on qualitative, often untestable lines of evidence adds significant noise to the data. More experiment-led pterosaur dietary research, with greater consideration of pterosaurs as organisms with independent evolutionary histories, will lead to more robust conclusions drawn from repeatable results. This will allow greater understanding of pterosaur dietary diversity, disparity and evolution and facilitate reconstructions of Mesozoic ecosystems.

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“…2d) and was associated with not only one, but two eggs, one still inside the body of the animal (Wang et al 2015) and therefore can be confidently regarded as a female. However, there are other aspects of the study of Lü et al (2011a) which are more problematic.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Premaxillary crest variation within the Wukongopteridae (Reptilia, Pterosauria) and comments on cranial structures in pterosaurs

Cheng

Jiang

Wang

et al. 2017

An. Acad. Bras. Ciênc.

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Cranial crests show considerable variation within the Pterosauria, a group of flying reptiles that developed powered flight. This includes the Wukongopteridae, a clade of non-pterodactyloids, where the presence or absence of such head structures, allied with variation in the pelvic canal, have been regarded as evidence for sexual dimorphism. Here we discuss the cranial crest variation within wukongopterids and briefly report on a new specimen (IVPP V 17957). We also show that there is no significant variation in the anatomy of the pelvis of crested and crestless specimens. We further revisit the discussion regarding the function of cranial structures in pterosaurs and argue that they cannot be dismissed a priori as a valuable tool for species recognition.

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Eggshell and Histology Provide Insight on the Life History of a Pterosaur with Two Functional Ovaries

Cited by 24 publications

References 28 publications

Prenatal development in pterosaurs and its implications for their postnatal locomotory ability

Prenatal development in pterosaurs and its implications for their postnatal locomotory ability

Pterosaur dietary hypotheses: a review of ideas and approaches

Premaxillary crest variation within the Wukongopteridae (Reptilia, Pterosauria) and comments on cranial structures in pterosaurs

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