(ORDO NEWS) — The researchers studied near-perfect fossils of the world‘s first gliding reptile and found that it was the change in tree canopy that likely caused these creatures to learn to fly.
Since the first fossils of Coelurosauravus elivensis were discovered in 1907, there has been heated debate about how this animal actually lived during the Late Permian period – from 260 to 252 million years ago – and how its unique body parts fit together.
By collecting enough fossils to create a near-perfect skeletal reconstruction, the new study provides new insights into the reptile’s morphology and habits, as well as how it became the first known reptile capable of gliding.
The answer to the last question lies in the gently sloping forest in which this unusual creature lived, experts from the National Museum of Natural History of France in Paris and the State Museum of Natural History of Karlsruhe in Germany suggest.
Explaining his findings, lead author Valentin Buffat of the Center for Paleontological Research in Paris states:
“Pennsylvania forests, although taxonomically and vertically heterogeneous, had fairly open canopy layers with spatially separated dendritic taxa resulting in little canopy overlap.
In contrast, denser communities are observed in Cisular forests, indicating more continuous canopy layers.
Such a change in forest structure may explain why no planarians have been recorded before them… they just had to move from place to place. As it turned out, planning was the most effective way to get around.”
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