TPO47 Pterosaurs were an ancient group of winged reptiles that lived alongside the dinosaurs Many pterosaurs were very large some as large as a giraffe and with a wingspan of over 12 meters Paleontologists have long wondered whether large pterosaurs we

The reading and the listening both explore the issue that the ability of pterosaurs to powered flight. The reading indicates that it is not possible for them to fly while the lecture claims that pterosaurs are capable of powered flight by using three theories.

Firstly, the reading states that comparing to the warm-blooded animals, cold-blood animals such as pterosaurs can not produce enough energy to fly. On the contrary, the lecturer contradicts that Pterosaurs have dense hair which is similar to fur to cover themselves, so they can produce lots of energy and supply for powered flight when the climate is cold.

Secondly, the reading passage said that the weight limitation restricts pterosaurs which are too heavy to flap their wings fast to fly. However, the speaker proclaims that Pterosaurs are light enough for their size. Because pterosaurs' bones are hollow rather than solid which contributes to keep their weight low enough to flap the wings.

Finally, the author points out that according to the fossil evidence, pterosaurs' back leg muscles are weak for running and jumping from the ground to the air. But the listening material argues that what is we all known is that birds use two legs to jump, but for pterosaurs, they can use their all four legs to help them push off from the ground. The professor made an example about four limb animal, the bats, they use their limbs to jump off the ground. What's more, there is already have some studies suggest that it is no problem for pterosaurs to jump high and launch into the air.