New genus of pterosaur named for the dragons of House Targaryen

Yeah, science! A toothy and dark-boned pterosaur — a kind of flying dinosaur — has been christened “Targaryendraco wiedenrothi,” in honor of House Targaryen, reports National Geographic.

What’s more, this long-dead creature is the first to be inducted into a newly made genus called Targaryendraco, made up of pterosaurs distinguished by unusually narrow snouts, 10-26 feet wingspans, and teeth that jut out of the tip of the jaw. Before, a lot of the pterosaurs in this grouping were being placed in the Ornithocheirus genus, but as understanding of pterosaurs grew, scientists have come to realize that they deserve their own name, and there’s better namesake than the Targaryens from Game of Thrones.

“[A]ll these species are from shallow coastal environments and probably fed on fish,” said Rodrigo Pêgas, the study lead and paleontologist at Universidade Federal do in São Bernardo do Campo, Brazil. “The slenderness of jaw is the main feature they share … it’s the most extreme slenderness in the jaws of any toothed pterosaurs.”

Targaryendraco pterosaur lived in what we know now as Germany some 130 million years ago, when the coastline there was warm and shallow. It would have thrived there, as its narrow jaw and sharp teeth would allow it to grab fish straight from the shallow waters. “The wings were elongate and narrow, and this shape is specific for modern birds and bats that fish on the wing,” said Pêgas.

The Targaryendraco wiedenrothi fossil in particular was discovered by amateur fossil hunter Kurt Wiedenroth in 1984 near Hanover, Germany. He donated it to the natural history museum in Stuttgart in 1990. He had no idea he discovered a dragon.

It’s no secret that pterosaurs of this kind have gone on to inspire dragons in fantasy fiction, although sometimes, links are lost. Pêgas complimented A Song of Ice and Fire author George R.R. Martin for keeping the dragons in his books anatomically correct, making sure they had two legs instead of four. “I always thought this was very nice, especially because I work on pterosaurs,” he said. “I am a big nerd and a big fan of Game of Thrones.”

Impressive legwork, George.

To stay up to date on everything fantasy, science fiction, and WiC, follow our all-encompassing Facebook page and sign up for our exclusive newsletter.

Watch Game of Thrones for FREE with a no-risk, 7-day free trial of Amazon Channels