Australia is known for the scariest animals on earth, and apparently that was true in prehistoric times as well. A newly-discovered fossil in western Queensland comes from a pterosaur with a wingspan that could have been as wide as seven meters (23 feet) and a snout full of terrifying teeth. Scientists have dubbed the species Thapunngaka shawi. <blockquote>[Tim] Richard led the research team analysing a fossil of the creature's jaw which was discovered in western Queensland, the northeastern Australian state, and published the research in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. He said: "It's the closest thing we have to a real life dragon. It was essentially just a skull with a long neck, bolted on a pair of long wings. This thing would have been quite savage. Advertisement "It would have cast a great shadow over some quivering little dinosaur that wouldn't have heard it until it was too late," he added. </blockquote>​<a href="https://news.sky.com/story/flying-reptile-discovered-in-queensland-was-closest-thing-we-have-to-real-life-dragon-12377043" class="on">Read more about the discovery</a> at Sky News or see <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/02724634.2021.1946068" class="on">the original research paper. </a>​ (Image credit: Tim Richard) #fossil #pterosaur #dragon #paleontology #Australia