Cryodrakon the ‘Frozen Dragon’ of the North

In Canada their once lived a giant flying pterosaur called cryodrakon. The fossils from this creature have actually been known from Canada since the 70s but they were mistaken for quetzalcoatlus. Only last year these fossils were re examined and it was found to be a unique animal that was new to science
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Sources:
books.google.co.uk/books?id=9...
www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/1...
core.ac.uk/download/pdf/23708...

[@javierpucheu6150]

Who made the great and weird decision of making the cryodrakon look like a canadian flag??

[@pigeonshit440]

I was thinking the exact same thing!

[@arlingtonhynes]

Either Ricky or Julian

[@Wildicon19]

He is a patriotic Pterosaur!

[@Princess2Warrior]

*It being smaller than a Human is disappointing - I thought flying Dinosaurs were supposed to be huge.*

[@edzejandehaan9265]

@@Princess2Warrior 1. Not a dinosaur. 2. Actually pretty huge for a flying creature.

[@GhengisJohn]

*Sees Canadian flag on the back of this flying reptile* "Most Canadian pterosaur ever."

[@ANTSEMUT1]

Only if it like to always apologise and say aboot 😜😜😜

[@enriqueramirez0615]

I like the pattern and also the pterosaur body color, white with red tips.

[@Simon_Augustine]

@@enriqueramirez0615 it's a good color scheme, Pridak wore it well.

[@Simon_Augustine]

It's a very good design.

[@vfmc77]

Thats what was thinking! Frozen dragon of the north.. CANADA!

[@GusCraft460]

“Frozen dragon of the north winds” sounds like a boss in some fantasy video game.

[@mysteryman9641]

That looks like a pokemon and you like pokemon don't you?

[@terdragontra8900]

"Cryodrakon" definitely sounds like a fantasy video game boss

[@mr.spider6859]

@@mysteryman9641 More like something from Monster Hunter.

[@mysteryman9641]

@@mr.spider6859 tbh I said that from the first picture, looks like something from alien vs predator.

[@DarDarBinks1986]

Sounds like something out of Skyrim.

[@GoldenPenHD]

Ah yes... the first Canadians.

[@yukiomarco5288]

Lol

[@anon9579]

So they would have said “Look out eh.” Long before Canada geese did lol

[@wyatt1339]

Same mouths

[@liamLoonietoons]

I remember those old days

[@mechwarrior13]

🤣

[@Harrier42861]

My favorite description of Azhdarchids remains "Giant Prehistoric Death Storks".

[@LeonardoDaSquishy]

Pterosaurs on land are just the weirdest looking things

[@MichaelDeHaven]

So true. Part of me wishes it was possible to see one in person. Then the rest of me realizes this would likely be a very bad idea!

[@travisfoster1071]

Almost doesn't look real. But most dinosaur remains look like a prank animal.

[@3_up_moon]

UWO's Unidentified Walking Object

[@3_up_moon]

@@MichaelDeHaven the last thing you ever saw haha

[@zenebean]

Beaked giraffes fused with tent flaps and a taste for blood. Nature is beautiful

[@elizabethhannah4332]

I love how the drawing of the flying Cyrodraken ( at 0:05) has a maple leaf in its back, making it look like the flag of Canada! Super cool, considering it was found in Canada. Props to the artist!

[@stegotyranno4206]

I saw that too!

[@RusTsea196T]

Yeah, that made me laugh! Was going to make the same comment but you're too fast!

[@christosvoskresye]

Sort of an inverse Canadian flag, though: a red maple leaf on a white field.

[@timothyj.bowlby5524]

It's nice that a bit of artistic license is being employed, for sure.

[@daddyleon]

@@stegotyranno4206 Lovely touch, not at all intrusive :)

[@nicholas9268]

I can honestly appreciate the amount of research and studying that goes into these videos, it’s insane.

[@SpyClawtt]

Wow they found a new giant pterosaur in upper North America, I wonder what it looked like? Some random person: Canada

[@BaoNguyen-bh2rk]

"It was even suggested that the species' name should be Cryodrakon viserion, after one of the dragon of Game of Thrones, but eventually boreas , or north winds, was settled upon." Paleontologists hate GoT season 8.

[@ingwiafraujaz3126]

I'm glad.

[@blondbraid7986]

I'm glad they didn't name it after GoT, it's far better to give an animal species a timeless name than something out of pop-culture.

[@SpectrumDT]

@@blondbraid7986 : I disagree. "Boreas" is so generic and clichéd and boring. I would rather have it named for a creature in an obscure story (past or present) that no one remembers. That's way more interesting.

[@gododoof]

@@SpectrumDT Hell no

[@ObsidianKing]

@@SpectrumDT Fortunately you weren't asked in this instance.

[@skullkid964]

My man you spelled CRYOCRYODRAKON, one CRYO to spare

[@dogepasta6974]

@Pleoryo damn, you mad corny

[@gamwpanagia]

@Pleoryo hahahaha!

[@JohnDrummondPhoto]

Hmm. A video about a Canadian azhdarchid, portrayed with a red maple leaf on its back, premiers the day after Canada Day. Coincidence? ... yeah probably.

[@InVinoVeratas]

2:57 I just realized, the red and white patterning on it, looks a lot like our Canadian Maple leaf flag.

[@camramaster]

Most canadian pterasaur.

[@pupyfan69]

its intentional on the part of the artist :)

[@ka-boom2083]

“Known for being mostly head and neck” 😂

[@rizzbusiness]

I lost a life long pet last month and your videos are one of the only things that help me focus and sleep. I love these videos and the content and your voice is very soothing. Thank you so much for making them.

[@daliborjovanovic510]

We probably also found Cryodrakon fossils in Montana's Two Medicine Formation, which is very close in both time and proximity to the Dinosaur Park Formation (Mid-Late Campanian), and shares some of the same dinosaur taxa. Fossils of these large azhdarchids (the biggest of the specimens having an estimated wingspan of 8 meters) were historically also lumped into Quetzalcoatlus, but likely represent Cryodrakon.

[@Leman.Russ.6thLegion]

I CAN ALMOST GUARANTEE ANCIENT PEOPLE HAD SEEN THESE BONES AND DECIDED, 'DRAGON. IT IS REAL.'

[@ocinnico2608]

Cryodrakon may just be the most badass sounding pterosaur name I've heard

[@Francois2144]

I would like to see a video of where and when exactly hair and feathers originated. In the Triassic, reptiles had already developed hair and feather like structures, even before the first dinosaurs appeared on earth. I think reptiles may have already evolved hair in the Permian period, when mammal-like reptiles were dominating Pangea. I've been researching this topic a lot lately.

[@mailasun]

I love how cryodrakon carries the Canadian flag on its back, when mammals were still rodent-sized.

[@brenislanders]

I came across your channel last night; your videos are so good and you deserve way more views

[@iamrazor9831]

I love seeing this channel grow it definitely deserves all the attention it gets

[@matthiasfloren2610]

One of the coolest names they gave to an animal

[@justskip4595]

You are doing good work with these videos. I am glad to see your channel finally growing.

[@LeonAnilom]

I love how it has a huge maple leaf patch in it's back, lol

[@barmiro]

"Quetzalcoatlus sp." literally means "Quetzalcoatlus species", it's not the name of any particular, smaller species of Quetzalcoatlus lol

[@FirstDagger]

And spp. would be used when describing several species.

[@kevinkelly2736]

LOL

[@TheYvesL]

Whomever written the script of this video likely never had a college biology class. Most people don't know what sp. means

[@aussiejjdude3066]

Sometimes it can be used to denote a species that hasn't been formally identified. :) It's incorrect, but sometimes this nomenclature is used.

[@levihuttner3260]

"sp." can be used as a label for a specimen that has not yet been formally described and has only been assigned to a genus. Until the Quetzalcoatlus specimen is formally described, the species can be referred to by "Q. sp." So he's not wrong, but he should have been more clear

[@dehidriranafiga6361]

Can you make more videos about evolution of species in one habitat like the Madagascar episode? That was my favourite video and I would love to see more like that. Also this video was awesome

[@SlayerEndX13]

1:18 Chemistry question: What temperature of absolute *chad* do you need to achieve to call this thing *"Frosty-Frost Dragon"?*

[@justicepeltier9001]

I became a subscriber to your channel a'couple weeks ago and just wanted to say keep up the good work. You're videos are absolutely amazing! Looking forward to seeing your future videos!

[@seanyboyc86]

Excellent video again man. Keep up the great work it’s fascinating stuff.

[@Shadeem]

"mostly head and neck" I dont know why that made me laugh so much, I mean we all thought it but we dont say it !

[@mitchellbury6463]

Your videos are actually the coolest. Just sitting here at three am watching as many as I can

[@Prehistorica]

Oh hey, there’s my art in the thumbnail! Cool

[@theluminaryinc]

one of my favorite paleontology channels on KZbin, keep it up

[@evang2881]

Hi moth light media! It would be absolutley brilliant if you could consider doing a video about the evolution of ratites, and their flighted ancestors.

[@Warpreacher]

Just found your channel, I love your channel. It's so relaxing. Love the content, channels like PBS eons have got it as well but damn do they grate on you after a while. Easily binge watch your vids man, top stuff.

[@humbleacho3814]

This is some quality content my friend

[@bablo82]

Honestly such a cool name for a prehistoric animal, usually it's something boring like being named after the geographical region a fossil was found in.

[@alvarosoares3530]

Yeah, Albertosaurus isn't a very attractive name

[@Oinker-Sploinker]

@@alvarosoares3530 Getting killed by something called albert would be pretty lame

[@TheDinosaurus99]

Great video dude. Love it

[@daddyleon]

So dinosaurs and humans did coexist! Creationists are right! (2:46 some campers in the woodline on its left, a the height of his back.)

[@milot7954]

brb im gonna go convert

[@3_up_moon]

Pterosaurs are not dinosaurs. They were reptiles but not dinosaurs. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[@DarDarBinks1986]

If you want a human-coexisting dinosaur, look at a bird.

[@thephenom724]

Now that's all I can see...

[@playbackgame9596]

Explain

[@Kiakyu]

0:46 is that a Canadian flag. Did you put a Canadian flag on the cyrodrakon because it was in the north

[@zobblewobble1770]

That is really silly, but after learning about smiley face spiders I won’t say it is impossible that something could evolve a Canadian flag pattern.

[@raminagrobis6112]

@@zobblewobble1770 And even better: as I mentioned, historically, it should have displayed an early Canadian flag, which didn't show a maple leaf but rather showed a Union Jack in the upper left corner.... Much like the first Australian or New Zealand flags

[@the6ix72]

@@zobblewobble1770 What The Fuck Is a smiley face spider

[@GeorgeTheDinoGuy]

Wow that animal looks amazing, those artists have gotta be proud and I’d hope to see more videos on the azdarchids!

[@jamesharmer9293]

How could this thing fly without nosediving into the ground? I appreciate that it was lightly built, but how did it manage to get it's centre of gravity between it's wings ?

[@caviramus0993]

They used a catapult like technique that mainly used their front limbs. Similar to what vampire bats do.

[@skyem5250]

The abbreviation "sp." indicates an unknown or unidentified species. For example, if a fossil can be identified as a big cat, but is too fragmentary to identify which big cat species it came from, it would be labeled "Panthera sp." The specimen labeled Quetzalcoatlus sp. was anatomically similar enough to Quetzalcoatlus northropi to be placed in Quetzalcoatlus, but smaller. This could be because it was a smaller species, but it could also be a juvenile, a small individual, sexual dimorphism, or something else.

[@greeenjeeens]

is 'sp.' then pronounced as 'species' in speech?

[@Tom-uv7ry]

Its a cracking channel this great stuff

[@MrTigerlore]

They look so top-heavy. I’d be stunned if I saw a giant living creature like that fly.

[@Notatallcopyrightmusic]

Great work

[@MadailinBurnhope]

thank you for introducing me to my new favourite pterosaur!

[@joshuacadavid871]

Great video, your videos are always calm and relaxing, but also informative and worth listening! You should do a Rhino Evolution video next, or sooner.

[@shadowraith1]

Very well done. Of course had to look up pterosaur tracks. thanks for your insights.👍🦕🦖👍

[@smeijers6879]

Frozen Dragon of the North Winds? I guess someone's a fan of anime 😂

[@Master_Yoda1990]

You are already dead.

[@konstantinstrau5310]

Yu-Gi-Oh

[@Master_Yoda1990]

Idk for some reason it reminded me of Fist of the North Star. A better anime in my opinion, but 4kids is how I was introduced to Yu-Gi-Oh.

[@Slapnuts9627]

Skyrim* "DOVAHKIIN! DRAGON OF THE NORTH!"

[@zenolachance1181]

You have no idea how much I wanted to see the tracks

[@Archangelm127]

Happy Canada Day to all of our northern brethren!

[@matthewchastain136]

2:55 That’s clever that they made it have a maple leaf pattern on its back.

[@johnkeviljr9625]

Love the distorted red maple leaf on its back. Impressive!

[@altitude1039]

Great markings!!😊🇨🇦

[@knaperstekt7953]

These animals look so funny to me. I feel like they would topple over on their face with that huge neck and head, making the center of gravity kind of weird. Great video and 10/10 animals!

[@damiensuil2183]

fascinating,accurate,and erudite

[@Maggoroni]

I love watching your videos while beading or sewing😁

[@jodysams7040]

Beautiful bird

[@richardcharay7788]

enjoyed!

[@Jaxck77]

Alternatively (or I suppose additionally to the "smaller prey" theory), these animals could've fed like gigantic pelicans. They would snap up a large prey and digest them slowly in an expandable gullet. This would explain the preference for larger size, especially as regards neck length, as well as the tendency to spend a significant portion of time on the ground.

[@caviramus0993]

They were not really suited to any type of skim feeding or diving. Pelicans are pretty clumsy on land.

[@Gandalf-The-Green]

Good that they didn't stick with C. viserion. Imagine: as a reward for their bad, lazy writing, the rich kids Benioff and Weiss had a pterosaur named after their derivative work. A story that befits this year 2020.

[@AztecJester93]

Wow, more than a year after GoT ended and the salt is still being mined.

[@timy.9512]

A testament to the fact that some screw-ups stick with you permanently.

[@Gandalf-The-Green]

@@AztecJester93 You mean the salt is still in our wounds

[@painy6588]

Dumb and Dumber didnt come up with the name tho.

[@crashhanna]

I would like to point out that the badlands of Alberta are not really that "icy". They are at about the same latitude as London and temperatures above 30 degrees Celsius are not uncommon in the summer.

[@sorryifoldcomment8596]

Uh, are you referring to present day climate? The climate was different millions of years ago. 😅

[@nutyyyy]

​@sorryifoldcomment8596 No, he means that people think it's much colder today than it really is. And in the late cretaceous it was a lot warmer.

[@lordodysseus]

Hey! I live in Alberta! Specifically, Edmonton. And that is the coolest name for a dinosaur ever!

[@Wildicon19]

I'm live in Edmonton Alberta also!

[@lindanorris2455]

LOVE PTEROSAUR AND PTERANODON!

[@joeshmoe8345]

Thanks

[@daddyleon]

I hope in 50 years time, the pterosaur-shape/body-plan is what we think of as one of the types of dragons in fantasy stories.

[@Blockheadfun]

Wyverns are very close in shape, and physical attributes to pterosaur remains.

[@selthafour6948]

That would be awesome to see!

[@thehornwortofhornwort9832]

This thing probably drank maple syrup and played hockey while everyone else was doing their dinosaur stuff.

[@roiscavel3923]

1:24 That would've been so cool (get it?) but sad at the same time. Let's hope book Viserion doesn't end up like that. Amazing vid tho 💙

[@amniote69]

Another great video. I think a point should be made about reconstructions of walking or standing azdarchids. To maintain balance, they would have had to extend the neck and the arms forward to the same degree in order to avoid toppling beak first into the ground. Some of the illustrations in this video, although fantastic, look somehow wrong because of this.

[@chi-weishen6740]

0:47 Is it Cryodrakon or Cryocryodrakon?

[@sorenrohrbach2361]

Hearing it pronounced as "Kwetzalcoatlus" brings me physical pain. Still good video, that's my only gripe

[@leoornstein3963]

Legend said if you are this early, Mr. Moth will give you a thump ups. Edit: that Canadian symbol though.

[@HaydenTheEeeeeeeeevilEukaryote]

nice save lmao

[@dashcroft1892]

CF-001 Cryodrakon

[@firstcynic92]

Somehow I doubt that it had the Canadian flag over it's back and wings.

[@morriskaller3549]

Everybody gangsta until the cyrodraken with a Maple leaf paintjob shows up

[@bruh949]

Due to Appalachia being home to only 2 mid sized Tyrannosauroids, whilst North American Tyrannosauridae lived in Laramidia, it’s possible it flew into Appalachia and was an apex predator like Hatzegopteryx was in europe over Hateg Island and Ibero-Armorican Island filling and empty niche.

[@guillermoiiialtaaduana3767]

Gracias

[@ravenouself4181]

Finally, an awesome name paired to an awesome creature

[@BrandonB532]

Dat's a big ol' birdy

[@a-ramenartist9734]

I wish pterosaurs were still alive, that would be so cool

[@hyunsung32]

Cryodraken is such a badass name

[@keeshlon]

Nice touch with the Canadian 🍁 on its back! 😁

[@theosnepenthes8751]

Very strange coincidence that, according to the artist, the animal that soared over Canada millions of years ago had colors and patterning identical to the modern Canadian flag! ;-)

[@simplypink8375]

wait, alberta actually got a significant prehistoric discovery? My day has just been made

[@astick5249]

Canada day special? Nice

[@dynamosaurusimperious6341]

What a interesting name for a Flying Reptile,like Cryodraken.

[@AngryMothNoises]

I live in oregon, born and raised. And most of Oregon is a desert. Only a small part is a temperate rain forest. (The vally) but the rest is shrub land and desert.

[@DonJuanMarco1994]

That an awesome name.

[@colinmckenzie9299]

One small correction, sp. is just an abbreviation for species and is used when the genus is known but the species is not

[@herbertfawcett7213]

Almost a maple leaf on its back! Artist's sense of humor.

[@keonschmalfeld1241]

Your videos are awesome but I keep falling asleep 😴😂😂

[@xAxCx]

Okay, who was the artist that decided to make it look like the Canadian flag? Genius!

[@katherinegilks3880]

The cryodrakon has a giant maple leaf on its back - likely to differentiate itself from its southern cousins when it goes travelling.

[@conner13.c16]

These kind of discoveries makes me wonder how many species of dinosaurs might be waiting to be identified stored in cold and dark museum deposits (I am not sure if “deposits” is the right word but I assume you get it)

[@foxhound963]

If we don't get on that, future archaeologists will have a lot of fun studying paleontology.

[@lordsrednuas]

A new 'missing' link of wombat and koala evolution was recently discovered, in a draw in a US museum, ~50 years after being dug up. www.abc.net.au/news/science/2020-06-26/giant-extinct-cousin-of-modern-wombats/12386834 So my money is on 'a lot'

[@Jon.Alexander]

I don't know about museums of natural history, but in lots of museums of cultural history the basements are filled with finds waiting to be identified. And bugs. 99% are of almost no interest though, and being done by the student assistant. It's probably not that bad with archo/dinosaurs, but still I bet a lot of the finds are just the ones we know and perhaps even in poor condition so that they'll spend a lot of time on less exciting stuff. Still there's probably a lot of interesting things to say from new findings of already known species like distribution and so on!

[@nutyyyy]

There will be a lot. Most material hasn't been described. But most will likely be similar to already known taxa.

[@IdiotN4]

Original upload gang where you at

[@blob5907]

its smiling and its cute

[@ArmchairDeity]

SO glad other people went “Wait, who decided to paint this beast like a Canadian flag?” 😂🤣

[@baalsbastards6341]

Virtually every long extinct species depicted is just a guess...

[@mysteryman9641]

That pokemon looks like it has the meanest aerial ace. 😂😂😂

[@_H0X]

Imagine this thing brave bird-ing at you

[@alioramus1637]

Don't let their looks fool you. According to paleontologists pterosaurs walked with style.