5.7" Fossil Pterosaur (Azhdarchidae) Wing Bone - Solnhofen Limestone

Fossil Pterosaur (Azhdarchidae) Wing Bone - Solnhofen Limestone #159701

This is a beautiful find from the Solnhofen Limestone in Germany, a complete azhdarchid wing bone. The bone measures 5.7" long and is located on a solid 8.3 x 4.9" slab of limestone.

There are two repaired cracks through this bone where the rock split during collection, each of which required some gap fill restoration. Comes with a display stand.

Azhdarchidae is a family of pterosaurs known primarily from the late Cretaceous Period though there has been some very rare material described from the Solnhofen Limestone as Azhdarchidae.

The oldest azhdarchoid pterosaur from the Late Jurassic Solnhofen Limestone (Early Tithonian) of Southern Germany

The Solnhofen limestone is a famous Upper Jurassic lagerstätte in Germany. It is where one of the most famous fossils of all time, Archaeopteryx, was found. The fine-grained limestone makes excellent building material, which has led to heavy quarrying over the past two centuries. In the process, some spectacular fossils were unearthed, including fossil dragonflies, fish, pterosaurs, shrimp, horseshoe crabs, and many more.

This area represents an ancient archipelago at the edge of a sea. Due to high salt content, the lowest levels in the water column could not support much life and were largely devoid of oxygen. This lack of oxygen and scavengers on the bottom of the sea led to beautiful fossil preservation.