# S12DB04 Why are pterosaurs bigger than birds?

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Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/terrible-lizards-138868/s12db04-why-are-pterosaurs-bigger-than-birds.md
Podcast: [Terrible Lizards](https://stenobird.com/podcast/terrible-lizards-138868)
Published: 2026-02-18T05:30:00+00:00
Episode link: https://terriblelizards.libsyn.com/tldb004-why-are-pterosaurs-bigger-than-birds
Audio file: https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/terriblelizards/dino_bite_4.mp3?dest-id=2117798
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Duration seconds: 675

## Resource

You can watch this episode on youtube here: https://youtu.be/QI_nmQPADcE Support the podcast and get extra content by going to: https://www.patreon.com/terriblelizards In this episode from 2022, we delve into an incident that occurred in a Lower Cretaceous tracksite in Utah. A digger driven by the Bureau of Land Management accidentally drove over dinosaur tracks, causing damage to the site. This incident sparked outrage as the BLM was accused of violating procedures that required the presence of a palaeontologist. We then discuss pterosaur evolution, exploring the common ancestor of dinosaurs and pterosaurs. We also discuss the remarkable size of Quetzalcoatlus and Azhdarchids, shedding light on the evolutionary journey of these magnificent creatures and why they are so much bigger than birds.

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