ケツァルコアトルス

📖 1. 概要

翼開長は約10～11m、地上に立ったときの高さはキリンと同じくらいの約5mと推定される、これまでに知られる最大の飛行動物の一つです。

🌐 Wikipedia 要約抜粋

Quetzalcoatlus is a genus of azhdarchid pterosaur that lived during the Maastrichtian age of the Late Cretaceous in North America. The type specimen, recovered in 1971 from the Javelina Formation of Texas, United States, consists of several wing fragments and was described as Quetzalcoatlus northropi in 1975 by Douglas Lawson. The generic name refers to the Aztec serpent god of the sky, Quetzalcōātl, while the specific name honors Jack Northrop, designer of a tailless fixed-wing aircraft. The remains of a second species were found between 1972 and 1974, also by Lawson, around 40 km (25 mi) from the Q. northropi locality. In 2021, these remains were assigned to the name Quetzalcoatlus lawsoni by Brian Andres and (posthumously) Wann Langston Jr., as part of a series of publications on the genus.

🦴 2. 体の構造と特徴

地上では四足で歩いて長いくちばしで小動物を捕食し、前肢で地面を強く蹴って飛び立ったという仮説が有力です。

🔍 3. 化石記録と古生態

成人男性（1.75m）の横に並べたとき、最も衝撃的なスケール対比を見せる翼竜です。

🇰🇷 4. 韓国との関わり

朝鮮半島南海岸の「ヘナムイクヌス（Haenamichnus）」翼竜歩行列化石と同じアズダルコ科に属します。