Brazilian, Chinese scientists unveil new pterosaur species

The scientific journal Scientific Reports on Thursday (Dec. 21) published an article revealing a new species of pterosaur, the Meilifeilong youhao, which belongs to the Chaoyangopteridae group. It lived in northeastern China during the Cretaceous period. The article was written by 14 Chinese and Brazilian researchers, representing nine institutions.

The species, like all the other members of the group, had no teeth and boasted a wingspan of over two meters. The publication marks 20 years of collaboration between Chinese and Brazilian experts in paleontology.

“It’s been 20 years of a fruitful and productive partnership. We’re happy to be working together, which has greatly contributed to the advancement of paleontology, especially pterosaurs, the first vertebrates to develop the ability to fly,” said researcher Xiaolin Wang, from the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, who spearheaded the study.

“We chose to express our friendship in the name of this new species: Meilifeilong: It means beautiful flying dragon, and youhao means friendship,” he said.

“It’s important to know that we’re talking about a rare group of pterosaurs, with Meilifeiling youhao as the most complete member. It has a cranial crest above the huge nasoantorbital window (an opening in the skull that includes the external nostrils) with a smooth extension,” said Professor Alexander Keller, paleontologist and director of the National Museum/UFRJ (Federal University of Rio de Janeiro), who coordinated the Brazilian participation in the research.

Scientific collaboration

The new discovery is considered a milestone in the 20-year partnership between Brazilian and Chinese paleontologists.

Diógenes de Almeida Campos, who initiated the collaboration alongside Professor Alexander Kellner, stressed the importance of the partnership: “Working with colleagues from China has been an important way of promoting the internationalization of science,” he said.

Over two decades, the Sino-Brazilian joint effort has produced dozens of papers, resulting in publications in the world’s leading scientific journals, including Science and Nature.

The study, published in Scientific Reports, of the Nature group, brought together 14 researchers from nine institutions: Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleontropology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, National Museum/UFRJ, Sun Yat-Sem University, Federal University of ABC, Jilin University, Shenyang University, Museum of Earth Sciences of Rio de Janeiro, Federal University of Espírito Santo, and Plácido Cidade Nuvens Paleontology Museum (Regional University of Cariri).