Pterosaur fossil found in Japan identified as new species

Kumamoto (Jiji Press) — A fossilized cervical vertebra discovered back in 1996 in southwestern Japan was found to have been a new genus and species of pterosaur, a prehistoric flying reptile.

A research team made up of members from Mifune Dinosaur Museum, which has the fossil on display, and others named the new species of the extinct flying vertebrates “Nipponopterus mifunensis,” or “Japan’s wings from Mifune” in Latin. This is the first time that a pterosaur has been named based on a fossil found in Japan.

The fossil was discovered from a geologic formation dating back 100.5 to 66 million years during the Late Cretaceous period in the town of Mifune in Kumamoto Prefecture by the town’s education board.

Past research had confirmed that the fossil was of a specimen of the Azhdarchidae family, a group of long-necked pterosaurs. Due to the scarcity of available fossils that could be used as reference at the time, the exact genus and species were left unidentified.

In the latest research, the team concluded that the fossil was of a new pterosaur genus and species due to several distinct features, through analysis of computed tomography scans and comparisons with about 200 species of pterosaurs.

The team’s finding was published in international journal Cretaceous Research in March this year.

“This is an important research result showing that pterosaurs were flying in the skies near Japan,” Naoki Ikegami, 57, a curator at the museum, said.

“The finding has opened the door to pterosaur research in Japan,” he added.