Scientists have revealed that they have discovered remnants of the largest flying animal that might have ruled the skies 70 million-years-ago during the Cretaceous period. After making this discovery, scientists have named it Cryodrakon boreas which means 'frozen dragon of the northwind'.
It should be noted that these remains were discovered years ago in Alberta. Until now, experts believed that these remains belonged to another giant pterosaur species known as Quetzalcoatlus. However, it was only after the new study that scientists confirmed its exact origin.
The flying animal which is extinct now had a mindblowing wingspan of 33 feet which makes it as big as a fighter jet. This study report published in the journal of Vertebrate Paleontology revealed that this giant bird is roughly three times the size of the current world's biggest bird, the wandering albatross.
"They're kind of built like a giraffe. If you stood next to a giraffe at a zoo and stretched its face about twice as long and bolted extra finger joints to its front legs, you've basically got it. They had huge heads, huge necks, and long, wispy bodies," said David Hone, director of the biology program at the Queen Mary University of London and the lead author of the study, NBC News reported.
The research report revealed that this giant bird weighed more than 200 kilograms. However, scientists are still clueless about the colouration of these giant flying animals.
As per Hone, Cryodrakon boreas used to live much of its life in the ground, walking around like a modern-day egret, feeding on animals like lizards and baby dinosaurs. However, these giant animals were also skilled fliers, and they could easily travel hundreds of miles with ease.
A few months back, researchers at the Chinese Academy of Sciences had discovered a tiny flying dinosaur in northeastern China. Interestingly, these flying animals weighed just 300 grams, and it might have flown across the skies during the Jurassic era.
