The pterosaur that made Australia's coasts unsafe

A wingspan of almost five metres and at least 43 pointed teeth in its snout: In its time 100 million years ago in the Cretaceous period, Haliskia peterseni was certainly one of the most feared pterosaurs in the skies over Australia. The remains of this pterosaur were found by Kevin Petersen, the curator of the Kronosaurus Korner Museum, and described by a team led by Adele Pentland from New Curtin University: The find is considered one of the best-preserved pterosaur fossils in Australia.

Petersen first discovered a bone in 2021 that had already been exposed on the surface and was immediately able to identify it as a pterosaur because the structure resembled a broken eggshell. He then worked with colleagues to recover the rest of the fossilisation, which was subsequently prepared from the surrounding sediment in the museum. A total of 22 per cent of the entire skeleton was preserved, including parts of the jaw, teeth, some vertebrae, ribs and wing and leg bones.

An examination of the skull fragments by Pentland and Co. suggests that the animal may have had a very powerful tongue. The available fossils were sufficient for the scientists to even identify the species as a new genus that lived on a huge inland sea called the Eromanga Sea, which covered large parts of what is now Queensland. These pterosaurs probably hunted fish and cephalopods back then, which they could safely grab with their numerous teeth.

It may have been a lucky coincidence that Petersen, of all people, came across the remains first: the site is a publicly accessible excavation site near Richmond, where amateurs are also allowed to work. During the Cretaceous period, however, Haliskia peterseni had even greater local competition: The pterosaur Thapunngaka shawi may have lived on the Eromanga Sea at the same time and had a wingspan of seven metres.

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