Pterosaurs were the first vertebrate flyers and lived for over 160 million years. However, aspects of their flight anatomy and flight performance remain unclear. Using laser-stimulated fluorescence, we observed direct soft tissue evidence of a wing root fairing in a pterosaur, a feature that smooths out the wing–body junction, reducing associated drag, as in modern aircraft and flying animals. Unlike bats and birds, the pterosaur wing root fairing was unique in being primarily made of muscle rather than fur or feathers. As a muscular feature, pterosaurs appear to have used their fairing to access further flight performance benefits through sophisticated control of their wing root and contributions to wing elevation and/or anterior wing motion during the flight stroke. This study underscores the value of using new instrumentation to fill knowledge gaps in pterosaur flight anatomy and evolution.

翼龙是最早的脊椎动物飞行者，寿命超过 1.6 亿年。然而，它们的飞行解剖结构和飞行性能方面仍不清楚。使用激光刺激荧光，我们观察到翼龙翼根整流罩的直接软组织证据，这一特征可以平滑翼身连接处，减少相关阻力，就像现代飞机和飞行动物一样。与蝙蝠和鸟类不同，翼龙翼根整流罩的独特之处在于主要由肌肉而不是毛皮或羽毛制成。作为一个肌肉特征，翼龙似乎已经利用它们的整流罩通过对其翼根的复杂控制以及在飞行行程期间对机翼仰角和/或前翼运动的贡献来获得进一步的飞行性能优势。