Pteranodon
Pteranodon (/təˈrænədɒn/); from Ancient Greek πτερόν (pteron 'wing') and ἀνόδων (anodous, anodontos 'toothless') is a genus of pterosaur that included some of the largest known flying reptiles, with P. longiceps having a wingspan of over 6 m (20 ft). They lived during the late Cretaceous geological period of North America in present-day Kansas, Nebraska, Wyoming, South Dakota and Alabama. More fossil specimens of Pteranodon have been found than any other pterosaur, with about 1,200 specimens known to science, many of them well preserved with nearly complete skulls and articulated skeletons. It was an important part of the animal community in the Western Interior Seaway.
| Pteranodon Temporal range: Late Cretaceous (Santonian), | |
|---|---|
| Mounted replica of an adult male P. longiceps skeleton, American Museum of Natural History | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Order: | †Pterosauria |
| Suborder: | †Pterodactyloidea |
| Family: | †Pteranodontidae |
| Subfamily: | †Pteranodontinae |
| Genus: | †Pteranodon Marsh, 1876 |
| Type species | |
| †Pteranodon longiceps Marsh, 1876 | |
| Other species | |
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| Synonyms | |
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Pteranodon is the most famous pterosaur, frequently featured in dinosaur media and strongly associated with dinosaurs by the general public. While not dinosaurs, pterosaurs such as Pteranodon form a clade closely related to dinosaurs as both fall within the clade Avemetatarsalia.