The Ohio University-led study finds that pterosaurs independently evolved specialized brain regions — described as onboard "flight computers" — long before birds. Using microCT reconstructions of cranial endocasts from more than three dozen species, researchers mapped stepwise neurological changes tied to powered flight. A 233-million-year-old lagerpetid, Ixalerpeton, shows early visual adaptations but lacks the enlarged flocculus that characterizes pterosaurs, which likely processed wing sensory feedback to stabilize gaze. The team also found pterosaurs kept relatively modest overall brain sizes compared with birds.
Pterosaurs Built Their Own "Flight Computers": New Study Traces Brain Evolution for Powered Flight
Ohio University researcher Lawrence Witmer and an international team have uncovered how pterosaurs engineered their own “flight computers,” revealing the brain adaptations that let these reptiles soar millions of years before birds.
A new study led by Ohio University paleontologist Lawrence Witmer shows that pterosaurs independently evolved specialized brain regions that functioned like onboard "flight computers," enabling powered flight long before birds took to the air. Using high-resolution 3D imaging and statistical shape analysis, the team traced stepwise neurological changes across a broad sample of archosaurs.
Key discovery: The fossilized skull of the 233-million-year-old lagerpetid Ixalerpeton from Brazil provided a crucial comparison point. While Ixalerpeton displays some visual enhancements that likely helped later flyers, it lacks the markedly enlarged cerebellar flocculus that is a distinctive feature of pterosaur brains.
How the study was done
Researchers reconstructed cranial endocasts from more than three dozen species — including pterosaurs, their close relatives (like Ixalerpeton), early dinosaurs and bird precursors, modern crocodilians and birds, and other Triassic archosaurs — using microCT and other high-resolution 3D imaging. They then applied quantitative statistical analyses to compare the size and 3D shape of brain regions across taxa.
What sets pterosaur brains apart
Pterosaurs evolved a greatly enlarged flocculus, a part of the cerebellum implicated in processing sensory feedback and stabilizing gaze during dynamic flight. This expansion likely helped pterosaurs integrate sensory input from their membranous wings and maintain visual fixation on targets while maneuvering.
“Lagerpetids were probably tree-dwellers, and their brains already show features linked to improved vision, such as an enlarged optic lobe... but they still lacked key neurological traits of pterosaurs,” said lead author Mario Bronzati.
Despite these specializations, the team found that pterosaurs retained relatively modest overall brain sizes compared with birds. As co-author Matteo Fabbri noted, this suggests that very large brains are not a strict requirement for powered flight.
Broader significance
The work demonstrates a stepwise, mosaic pattern of neurological evolution leading to flight and highlights the continued value of paleontological fieldwork — especially discoveries from southern Brazil — in revealing the deep history of major vertebrate innovations.
Publication: The paper appears in Current Biology. The research combined fossil evidence, advanced imaging, and quantitative analysis to illuminate how complex behaviors such as powered flight can emerge through incremental changes in brain anatomy.
Reporting note: The original draft was prepared by Dave DeMille with assistance from AI; journalists participated in all steps of information gathering, review, editing, and publishing.
