Baby pterosaurs ready to fly straight from egg

Just-hatched pterosaurs may have been able to fly, as new research has found the wing bones would have been strong enough for flight.

A study by the universities of Bristol and Portsmouth into prehistoric flying reptiles found that although the hatchlings might have been able to fly, their flying styles would have been different to adults.

Pterosaurs were flying reptiles that lived during the triassic, jurassic and cretaceous periods, dating from 228 million to 66 million years ago.

The study, published in Scientific Reports, found that hatchling wing bones were stronger than those of many adult pterosaurs.