Weigeltisaurus jaekeli

3D Model

Weigeltisaurus was a small Permian era reptile that is the oldest known flying/gliding vertebrate. Although technically a diapsid (2 post-orbital fenestrae or holes), it apparently lacked the bridge of bone between the post-orbital bone and squamosal. As a result, it has a large fenestra behind the orbit instead of two. So, there’s not a lot of data/references for the occipital area or palate (that I could find). As such, this model should be looked at as my interpretation, which is probably wildly inaccurate. Oh, it had skin flap wings too. The Smithsonian has a great article here: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/national-museum-of-natural-history/2021/10/13/the-oldest-airborne-animal-was-a-reptile-with-weird-wings/