The Dracula flying lizard lived approximately 66 million years ago, standing as tall as a giraffe and sporting wings with a wingspan of 12 meters.
One of the most remarkable specimens at the Altmuhltal Dinosaur Museum in Denkendorf, Germany, is the fossil of a flying lizard that inhabited Transylvania, Romania, 66 million years ago. This could also be the largest creature ever to fly on Earth. In 2009, when the fossil was discovered in the Hateg Basin of Transylvania, Romania, scientists nicknamed it Dracula.
Model of the Dracula flying lizard at the Altmuhltal Dinosaur Museum, Germany. (Photo: Axel Schmidt/Altmuhltal Dinosaur Museum).
The Altmuhltal Dinosaur Museum features a replica of the Dracula fossil along with a model skeleton and a life-sized statue of this creature. With an estimated height of 3.5 meters and a wingspan of 11.4 to 12 meters, it could be compared to a giraffe when standing or a small airplane when flying.
Dracula belongs to the Azhdarchidae family of flying lizards, known for their massive size, though typically they only have a maximum wingspan of about 10 meters. Therefore, it remains a giant even when compared to its relatives.
However, the question that has puzzled scientists for many years is whether such a gigantic creature like Dracula, or even its flying lizard relatives, could actually fly. A 2018 study published in Scientific American suggested that the wrist features of Dracula might indicate that the creature did not have the appropriate structure for flight. However, this remains speculation due to the severely fragmented and incomplete fossil of Dracula.
Reconstruction of Dracula, the largest flying lizard ever discovered. (Photo: Frederik Spindler/Altmuhltal Dinosaur Museum).
A new study published in the journal Current Biology in 2024 by a team of scientists at the University of Leicester examined the evolutionary history of flying lizards through their fossilized limbs. During their research, they discovered a significant change in the middle Jurassic period when the anatomy of the hands and feet of flying lizards began to resemble that of terrestrial animals.
“In the earliest flying lizards, the hind limbs were connected by a membrane, which significantly hindered walking and running. In later flying lizard species, this membrane separated in the middle, allowing each hind limb to move independently. This was an important innovation, combined with changes in the hands and feet, greatly enhancing the terrestrial mobility of flying lizards,” said co-author Dr. David Unwin.
This was key to their development of larger bodies. “When no longer constrained by climbing, later flying lizards could grow to enormous sizes, with some species becoming true giants of the Mesozoic Era (252 – 66 million years ago),” Unwin added.
“The ability of flying lizards to fly is just part of the story. By exploring how they lived in trees or on the ground, we can begin to understand their role in ancient ecosystems,” noted the lead author of the study, Robert Smyth.
