Dinosaur hunters in Brazil have just found the skull of a huge flying reptile that lived about 110 million years ago. The skull belonged to a previously unknown species of flying reptiles called pterosaurs (pronounced TER-oh-sawrs), researchers announced last week.

The Facts on Pterosaurs
Pterosaurs are the Earth's largest known flying reptiles. They became extinct along with dinosaurs about 65 million years ago, when a giant asteroid crashed into the Earth. Scientists say the pterosaur flew on 15-foot wings of furry skin over a land dominated by dinosaurs.

Thalassodromeus sethi dipped into water to catch its prey.

Soaring Sea Runners
Researchers believe the newly discovered species caught fish by dipping and diving into the ocean as fast as 25 miles per hour. This characteristic inspired researchers to name the new pterosaur Thalassodromeus sethi. The first word is Greek for "sea runner" and the second honors the ancient Egyptian god Seth. In ancient Egyptian history, Seth is known as the god of wind and storms.

The pterosaur is thought to have lived on the shores of an ancient lagoon (or shallow body of water) called the Araripe. The lagoon was not far from the ocean. "One can only imagine the incredible sight of these flying reptiles skimming the Araripe lagoon some 110 million years ago," said Alan Feduccia, a dinosaur expert at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

A Rare Fossil Find
Unlike other animals from the age of dinosaurs, fossils of pterosaurs are very rare. Like birds of today, the bones of pterosaurs were thin and usually didn't survive as fossils. That is what makes this fossil find so important, according to researcher Alexander Kellner, one of the scientists who found the fossils.

In a telephone interview from Brazil with Reuters news agency, Kellner said: "If you didn't have the fossils, you wouldn't believe that such an animal would have ever lived."