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Description
The only Pterosaur so far uncovered from the Middle Oligocene Kumbaluk Cliffs site of Kazakhstan was Aralodraco. It is a rather poorly understood animal; the entirety of our knowledge about it is based on a single poorly preserved skull that lacks a lower jaw. From the material that has been described, it is clear that Aralodraco was a modestly sized Azhdarchoid with an elongated spear-like beak. There is also a hint of a backward curving bony crest at the rear of the skull, although how long this structure was in life is unknown due to poor preservation. Unique morphological traits of the fossil suggest that this Pterosaur was a basal member of the modern Zilantid family. Possessing a near global radiation (with the exception of Antarctica), Zilantids are carnivorous terrestrial stalkers of small prey. Like Aralodraco, modern forms possess elongated beaks and inhabit an environmental niches similar to the storks and ground hornbills of Our Earth; albeit significantly larger. Overall, Zilantid wingspans range between 2-6m and size estimates for A. longirostris place it in the higher reaches of this bracket. It is possible that these animals shrank as time went on, especially given the rise of the more exclusively predatory Smaugopteryformes over the course of the Oligoene and Miocene. More on them another time! In all, the Zilantids are rather conservative as Azhdarchoids go, strongly resembling Late Cretaceous forms in appearance. As their fossil record is quite poor, we do not know when they originated for certain but phylogenetic studies suggest a Late Eocene point of diversion.

Description
The only Pterosaur so far uncovered from the Middle Oligocene Kumbaluk Cliffs site of Kazakhstan was Aralodraco. It is a rather poorly understood animal; the entirety of our knowledge about it is based on a single poorly preserved skull that lacks a lower jaw. From the material that has been described, it is clear that Aralodraco was a modestly sized Azhdarchoid with an elongated spear-like beak. There is also a hint of a backward curving bony crest at the rear of the skull, although how long this structure was in life is unknown due to poor preservation. Unique morphological traits of the fossil suggest that this Pterosaur was a basal member of the modern Zilantid family. Possessing a near global radiation (with the exception of Antarctica), Zilantids are carnivorous terrestrial stalkers of small prey. Like Aralodraco, modern forms possess elongated beaks and inhabit an environmental niches similar to the storks and ground hornbills of Our Earth; albeit significantly larger. Overall, Zilantid wingspans range between 2-6m and size estimates for A. longirostris place it in the higher reaches of this bracket. It is possible that these animals shrank as time went on, especially given the rise of the more exclusively predatory Smaugopteryformes over the course of the Oligoene and Miocene. More on them another time! In all, the Zilantids are rather conservative as Azhdarchoids go, strongly resembling Late Cretaceous forms in appearance. As their fossil record is quite poor, we do not know when they originated for certain but phylogenetic studies suggest a Late Eocene point of diversion.