Ornithocheyrides [2] ( lat. Ornithocheiridae ) - a family of pterosaurs from the suborder Pterodactyloidea , who lived in the Cretaceous period . Like today's albatrosses , they lived near ponds and ate fish.
| † Ornithocherides |
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Reconstruction of Liaoningopterus |
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| No rank : | Bilateral symmetrical |
| Infraclass : | Archosauromorphs |
| No rank : | Archosauriformes |
| Treasure : | † Pterosauromorphs |
| Treasure : | † Ornithocheiroidea |
| Treasure : | † Pteranodontia |
| Superfamily : | † Pteranodontoidea |
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Ornithocheiridae Seeley , 1870 |
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- Criorhynchidae Hooley, 1914 [1]
- Ornithocheirinae, orth. var. [one]
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All members of the family had a wingspan of more than a meter, most reached from 3 to 4.5, or even up to 6 meters ( Coloborhynchus ). In the Chinese province of Jaehe , an egg with an embryo was found, the wingspan of which was 25 centimeters [3] .
In contrast to the family of toothless pteranodontids associated with it, the jaws of ornithoheridis were equipped with teeth, and the anterior ones were especially large. In the front of the beak there was often a rounded or triangular bone crest [2] , which could serve to improve aerodynamics or facilitate diving.
Ornithocheyrides, together with Istiodactylus and related toothless species of pteranodon and Nichosaurus, make up the Ornithocheiroidea clade , one of four large evolutionary lines descended from pterodactyls.
Classification
- Anhanguera
- Arthurdactylus
- Boreopterus
- Brasileodactylus
- Coloborhynchus
- Haopterus
- Liaoningopterus
- Liaoxipterus
- Ludodactylus
- Ornithocheirus
- Piksi
