Azhdarchidae is a family of pterosaurs known primarily from the Late Cretaceous Period, though an isolated vertebra apparently from an azhdarchid is known from the Early Cretaceous as well. Azhdarchids included some of the largest known flying animals of all time, but smaller cat-size members have also been found. Originally considered a sub-family of Pteranodontidae, Nesov (1984) named the Azhdarchinae to include the pterosaurs Azhdarcho, Quetzalcoatlus, and Titanopteryx. They were among the last known surviving members of the pterosaurs, and were a rather successful group with a worldwide distribution. Previously it was thought that by the end of the Cretaceous, most pterosaur families except for the Azhdarchidae disappeared from the fossil record, but recent studies indicate a wealth of pterosaurian fauna, including pteranodontids, nyctosaurids, tapejarids and several indeterminate forms. In several analyses, some taxa such as Navajodactylus, Bakonydraco and Montanazhdarcho were moved from Azhdarchidae to other clades.
The Pteranodontidae are a family of large pterosaurs of the Cretaceous Period of North America and Africa. The family was named in 1876 by Othniel Charles Marsh. Pteranodontids had a distinctive, elongated crest jutting from the rear of the head. The spectacularly-crested Nyctosaurus is sometimes included in this family, though usually placed in its own family, the Nyctosauridae.
Montanazhdarcho is a genus of azhdarchoid pterosaur from the Late Cretaceous period of what is now the state of Montana, United States. Montanazhdarcho is known from only one species, M. minor.
Bogolubovia is a genus of pterosaur from the Upper Cretaceous Rybushka Formation of Petrovsk, Saratov Oblast, Russia. It is named for Nikolai Nikolaevich Bogolubov, the paleontologist who discovered the remains in 1914. It was in 1991 assigned to the Azhdarchidae. Wellnhofer (1991) however, retained it in the Pteranodontidae. Bogolubov had initially assigned the specimen, consisting of a single partial large cervical vertebra, as a new species of Ornithostoma, O. orientalis. It was later reclassified as a species of Pteranodon, before being assigned its own genus by Lev Nesov and Alexander Yarkov in 1989. The holotype has probably been lost, but other partial remains have been referred to the genus.
Phosphatodraco is a genus of azhdarchid pterosaur that lived during the Late Cretaceous of what is now Morocco. In 2000, a pterosaur specimen consisting of five cervical (neck) vertebrae was discovered in the Ouled Abdoun Phosphatic Basin. The specimen was made the holotype of the new genus and species Phosphatodraco mauritanicus in 2003; the genus name means "dragon from the phosphates", and the specific name refers to the region of Mauretania. Phosphatodraco was the first Late Cretaceous pterosaur known from North Africa, and the second pterosaur genus described from Morocco. It is one of the only known azhdarchids preserving a relatively complete neck, and was one of the last known pterosaurs. Additional cervical vertebrae have since been assigned to the genus, and it has been suggested that fossils of the pterosaur Tethydraco represent wing elements of Phosphatodraco.
Lonchodectes was a genus of lonchodectid pterosaur from several formations dating to the Turonian of England, mostly in the area around Kent. The species belonging to it had been assigned to Ornithocheirus until David Unwin's work of the 1990s and 2000s. Several potential species are known; most are based on scrappy remains, and have gone through several other generic assignments. The genus is part of the complex taxonomy issues surrounding Early Cretaceous pterosaurs from Brazil and England, such as Amblydectes, Anhanguera, Coloborhynchus, and Ornithocheirus.
Lonchodectidae or Lonchodraconidae is a group of pterosaurs within the clade Pterodactyloidea. It has variously been considered to be within Ctenochasmatoidea, Azhdarchoidea and Pteranodontia. They are notable for their high, conical tooth sockets and raised alveolar margins.
Aralazhdarcho is a genus of azhdarchid pterosaur from the Santonian to the early Campanian stages of the Late Cretaceous period of Bostobe Svita in Kazakhstan. The type and only known species is Aralazhdarcho bostobensis.
Cretornis is a pterosaur genus from the late Cretaceous period of what is now the Jizera Formation in the Czech Republic, dating to about 92 million years ago. It only contains a single species, Cretornis hlavaci.
Elanodactylus is a genus of ctenochasmatid pterodactyloid pterosaur from the Early Cretaceous period of what is now the Yixian Formation of Liaoning, China.
Nyctosauridae is a family of specialized soaring pterosaurs of the late Cretaceous Period of North America, Africa, and possibly Europe. It was named in 1889 by Henry Alleyne Nicholson and Richard Lydekker.
Alanqa is a genus of pterodactyloid pterosaur from the Late Cretaceous period of what is now the Kem Kem Beds of southeastern Morocco. The name Alanqa comes from the Arabic word العنقاءal-‘Anqā’, for a mythical bird of Arabian culture.
Aerotitan is a genus of large azhdarchid pterosaur known from the Late Cretaceous period of what is now the Allen Formation of the Neuquén Basin in northern Patagonia, Argentina.
Alamodactylus is an extinct genus of nyctosaurid pteranodontoid pterosaur known from the Late Cretaceous of Texas, southern United States. It contains a single species, Alamodactylus byrdi.
The Pudovkino Formation is a Late Cretaceous (Campanian) geologic formation in Saratov Oblast of European Russia. Pterosaur fossils have been recovered from the marine marls of the formation.
The Rybushka Formation is a Campanian geologic formation in the Penza and Saratov Oblasts of European Russia. Pterosaur, fish and invertebrate fossils have been recovered from the formation.
Tethydraco is a genus of pterodactyloid pterosaur that lived during the Late Cretaceous period of what is now the area of present Morocco, about 66 million years ago. Tethydraco was originally assigned to the family Pteranodontidae. Some researchers argued that subsequently described material suggests that it may have been an azhdarchid, and possibly synonymous with Phosphatodraco, though this has been disputed. The type and only species is T. regalis.
Alcione is a genus of pterosaur from the Ouled Abdoun Basin of Morocco, dating back to the Maastrichtian stage of the Late Cretaceous period. Only one species, A. elainus, is known. This pterosaur lived in a marine environment alongside several other pterosaurs, including Simurghia and Barbaridactylus.
Barbaridactylus is a nyctosaurid pterosaur from the Ouled Abdoun Basin of Morocco, a basin that dates back to the Maastrichtian stage of the Late Cretaceous. It was published in 2018 by paleontologists Nicholas R. Longrich, David M. Martill, and Brian Andres. In the same publication, two other pterosaurs from the same basin were described: Alcione and Simurghia. The type and only species is B. grandis.
Simurghia is a genus of pterosaur from the Ouled Abdoun Basin of Morocco, a basin that dates to the Maastrichtian stage of the Late Cretaceous period, about 66 million years ago. It was published in 2018 by paleontologists Nicholas R. Longrich, David M. Martill, and Brian Andres, along with two other pterosaurs from the same basin: Alcione and Barbaridactylus. The type and only species is S. robusta.
