Pteranodontidae

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Pteranodontids
Fossil range: Mid-Late Cretaceous
Skeletal reconstruction of Pteranodon
Skeletal reconstruction of Pteranodon
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Sauropsida
Order: Pterosauria
Suborder: Pterodactyloidea
Family: Pteranodontidae
Marsh, 1876
Genera
Synonyms
  • Ornithostomatidae Williston, 1893

Pteranodontidae is a family of large pterosaurs of the Cretaceous Period of North America. Many pteranodontids had a distinctive, elongated crest jutting from the rear of the head (most famously seen in Pteranodon itself). The spectacularly-crested Nyctosaurus is often included in this family, though originally placed in its own family, the Nyctosauridae (Williston, 1903).