Quetzalcoatlus northropi- BIO203
Interactions
Scientists still are not sure about the feeding
habits of Quetzalcoatlus northropi. One theory is that
Q. northropi
would fly over the ocean or large bodies of water and use its long sharp
beak to catch fish. Another more recent theory is that Q. northropi
acted more like a heron in the way that it would land on the ground and
walk around slowly looking for smaller prey to snatch up with its large
beak. The types of prey it would hunt were rodents, small reptiles,
insects, and small dinosaurs. This theory also believes that Q.
northropi did not only fit the niche of preditor but was also a
scavenger. While soaring in the air they were able to find dead animals
and scavenge some of the meat that was left (Burdick, 2013). Some
scientists would argue that Q. northropi was too large to pursue aerial
prey or to snap up fish while flying. Some even doubt that Q. northropi
was a scavenger because they believe that its crane-like beak was too
weak. “Instead, Q. northropi probably picked up fish, frogs, turtles,
and so on from the shallows (Paul, 1987).” Q. northropi was estimated to
have a wingspan of around 35 feet and was thought to weigh around 165lbs
(Brower and Veinus, 1981). There is a lot of controversy over these
numbers though and other authors estimate that Q. northropi was as tall
as a giraffe and could weigh up to 550lbs (Switek, 2013). Because of
this animals vast size it had few predators once full-grown other than
large carnivores like the Tyrannosaurs Rex or Gigantosaurus (Burdick,
2013). Before it becomes full-grown Q. northropi could have become prey
to smaller predatory pterodactyls or other small predatory dinosaurs
(Burdick, 2013). Figure 1. Representation
of a pterosaur skim feeding.
