Day 373#: Phosphatodraco mauritanicus
Today's animal of the day is Phosphatodraco mauritanicus!
Image credit: BBC Studios (Prehistoric Planet season 1 episode 1: Coasts)
This species of pterosaur lived during the Late Cretaceous in what is now Morocco and was a member of the Azhdarchid family, which also includes the gigantic Quetzalcoatlus northropi. If you watched Prehistoric Planet, you might remember this guy from the pterosaur nesting site scene, where he is wandering about a Tethydraco colony in search of any unattended babies to eat. While Phosphatodraco was much smaller than Quetzalcoatlus, it was still quite large for a flying animal. There's some debate in the paleontological community about its exact size, but current size estimates say it was around 9 ft tall with a wingspan between 13 and 16 ft long. Like the other members of its family, Phosphatodraco would've had a long neck and beak, which it would've used to snatch up anything smaller than itself.
Image credit: cisiopurple on DeviantArt
Its genus name means "dragon from the phosphates" in reference to the Ouled Abdoun Phosphatic Basin where it was first discovered. This area is chock-full of pterosaur fossils of numerous different species, such as Tethydraco, Alcione, Barbaridactylus, Simurghia, and many more. During the Late Cretaceous, this area was likely a coastal environment, as it contains a mix of both fish and marine reptile fossils as well as those of terrestrial dinosaurs.
Image credit: Joschua Knüppe
It's believed that Phosphatodraco would've had a generalist lifestyle and wouldn't have been picky about whether it was eating live prey or scavenging on the carcasses of already dead creatures. Due to its large size, it likely wouldn't chase after prey in the sky, as that would take up a lot of energy, and instead, it is believed to have been more of a terrestrial hunter. In fact, Phosphatodraco is unique amongst even other Azharchids because it had tall neural spines on its vertebrae, which would have allowed it to extend its long neck even further while chasing prey on the ground.
