31" Pterosaur Wing (Azhdarchidae) - Solnhofen Limestone

Pterosaur Wing (Azhdarchidae) - Solnhofen Limestone #136252

This is a very rare find from the Solnhofen Limestone in Germany, a complete azhdarchid pterosaur wing. The entire wing would measure 31" long if the bones were outstretched. It's 23" across as laid out on the rock with two of the bones tucked underneath. It is located on a solid 30 x 12" slab of limestone. Even isolated bones of pterosaurs are rare finds in these quarries, so an articulated wing like this one is very rare.

Comes with a display stand.

Azhdarchidae is a family of pterosaurs known primarily from the late Cretaceous Period though there has been some very rare material described from the Solnhofen Limestone as Azhdarchidae. This wing was identified as Azhdarchidae based on the very long metacarpal bone and strong humerus that distinguish it from other pterosaurs in the formation.

The oldest azhdarchoid pterosaur from the Late Jurassic Solnhofen Limestone (Early Tithonian) of Southern Germany

The Solnhofen limestone is a famous Upper Jurassic lagerstätte in Germany. It is where one of the most famous fossils of all time, Archaeopteryx, was found. The fine-grained limestone makes excellent building material, which has led to heavy quarrying over the past two centuries. In the process, some spectacular fossils were unearthed, including fossil dragonflies, fish, pterosaurs, shrimp, horseshoe crabs, and many more.

This area represents an ancient archipelago at the edge of a sea. Due to high salt content, the lowest levels in the water column could not support much life and were largely devoid of oxygen. This lack of oxygen and scavengers on the bottom of the sea led to beautiful fossil preservation.

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