Category
page 1Jurassic Scotland
Dearc
Dearc ( ) is a genus of large-bodied rhamphorhynchine pterosaur from the Middle Jurassic Lealt Shale Formation of Scotland. The holotype, a juvenile or subadult that was still actively growing, has an estimated wingspan of 2.5 to 3 meters, making it the largest flying animal of its time. This pushes the origin of large pterosaurs back significantly, as it was previously assumed that pterosaurs did not reach greater body sizes until the short-tailed pterodactyloid lineages of the Cretaceous. The genus contains a single species, Dearc sgiathanach ( ).
Dearcmhara
Dearcmhara (pronounced like "jark vara"; Scottish Gaelic: "marine lizard") is a genus of marine reptile from the early to mid-Jurassic period around 170 million years ago, known from fossil remains found on the island of Skye in Scotland. The type species is Dearcmhara shawcrossi. Fragmentary fossil remains of the animal were discovered by an amateur fossil hunter in 1959 and were subsequently donated to a museum, but it was not until 2014 that a scientific research project determined that the fossils were of a previously unknown species.
Ceoptera
Ceoptera (meaning "mist wing") is an extinct genus of darwinopteran pterosaur from the Middle Jurassic Kilmaluag Formation of Scotland. The genus contains a single species, C. evansae, known from a partial skeleton discovered in 2006 and named in 2024. It is the only pterosaur from the Kilmaluag Formation and the second pterosaur named from Scotland, after Dearc in 2022. As one of the only pterosaur skeletons known from the Middle Jurassic, its discovery contributed to understanding the early diversification of the group. Belonging to the group Darwinoptera, a group intermediate between early