Maastrichtian Pterosaurs of North Africa

[Troodon]

The attached paper describes a diverse pterosaur assemblage from the late Maastrichtian of Morocco that includes not only Azhdarchidae but the youngest known Pteranodontidae and Nyctosauridae.

The fossils described come from the upper Maastrichtian phosphates of the Ouled Abdoun Basin, in northern Morocco

 

http://journals.plos.org/plosbiology/article?id=10.1371/journal.pbio.2001663

 

 

[LordTrilobite]

Nice!

[DD1991]

That's a pretty impressive paper. By describing Pteranodon and Nyctosaurus relatives from the end-Cretaceous of Morocco, it shows that pteranodontids and nyctosaurids co-existed with azhdarchids outside the Western Hemisphere by the time of the K-T extinction, considering that pteranodontids were previously known only from marine deposits of the former Western Interior Seaway.