Fossils show flying reptiles ate squid and fish
Prehistoric flying reptiles primarily subsisted on a diet consisting of small fish and squid, according to the latest scientific findings.
Researcher Dr. Roy Smith said that stomach contents found in fossils were the "smoking gun" evidence for their diets.
The findings were made by researchers from London's University of Portsmouth and the State Natural History Museum in Stuttgart, Germany, and were published in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology.
Pterosaurs lived approximately 182 million years ago, and had wingspans of up to 12 meters (39 feet).
The research team examined the fossilised contents of the stomachs of the two pterosaur species, dorygnathus and campylognathoides.
They resided during the early Jurassic epoch and were unearthed in the southwestern region of present-day Germany.
Research uncovered that dorygnathus had consumed small fish as its most recent meal, whereas campylognathoides fed on ancient squid.
Professor Smith from Portsmouth University's School of Environment and Life Sciences stated: "It is extremely unusual to discover 180 million-year-old pterosaurs preserved with their digestive contents, and this finding represents 'smoking gun' proof of the eating habits of these animals.
This discovery provides an exceptional and captivating insight into the habits of these ancient beings, which reveals information about their diet, the environments they inhabited, and their ecological surroundings millions of years ago.
Dr. Samuel Cooper, from the University of Portsmouth, said the stomach contents showed scientists "how the animals interacted with each other".
He added: "For myself, this evidence of squid remains in the stomach of Campylognathoides is therefore particularly interesting.
Up to now, we used to believe it fed on fish, much like dorygnathus did, in which we found tiny fish bones as stomach contents.
The fact that these two pterosaur species consumed distinct prey suggests they were likely adapted for different dietary preferences.
This enabled Dorygnathus and Campylognathoides to inhabit the same territory simultaneously without marked competition for sustenance between the two species.
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