Re: the largest Pterosaur

[Michael Habib <mhabib5@jhmi.edu>]

On Monday, April 23, 2007, at 03:06  PM, jrc wrote:

> Mike, the Hatz humerus doesn't look any more robust than the northropi 
> humerus to me, and the dp crest is less robust, and might remain so 
> even after restoration of degradation.  I don't think the fossil 
> record is definitive yet.  I just measured a northropi humerus, and 
> the proximal end measures a little over 11.5 inches (0.29 m) in a 
> straight line from the aft side of the humerus to the anterior tip of 
> the delto-pectoral crest.  The distance between the same points 
> measured along the periphery of the bone measures a LOT more, roughly 
> 1.75 feet (0.53 m)
> JimC

I made some attempt to reconstruct the likely contour of the dp crest 
in Hatz using photos that had been taken from multiple angles.  The 
estimate is very rough, but generally the Hatz humerus seemed to come 
out close to Quetz humerus in overall shape.  The dp crest might be a 
bit more gracile in Hatz, and is quite unlikely to have been larger (as 
best as I can make out).  My very general conclusion is that the two 
animals were very close to the same size, with some small differences 
in build.  Which one was actually larger doesn't seem possible to 
ascertain, from what I've seen thus far.

Cheers,

--MH