Quetzalcoatlus (Wings spread)
10.5 m (34.45 ft)
Estimated wingspan
A giant pterosaur, one of the largest flying animals ever. Wingspan: an estimated 10 to 11 m, nearly twice a giraffe's height.
Published
How big is that?
10.5 m is 6 times an adult man and 39% of a blue whale.
Quetzalcoatlus is the 7th largest of the 31 Prehistoric Giants objects, and the 50th smallest of the 109 objects across all three SizeItUp games.
Closest in size from the other games: Football goal (Full size) (Classic), 7.32 m and Shipping container (40 ft) (Classic), 12.192 m long.
Size comparison
To scale, smallest to largest: Quetzalcoatlus in orange beside the Prehistoric Giants objects nearest in size, in teal.
| Object | Size | vs Quetzalcoatlus |
|---|---|---|
| AnkylosaurusThe armoured dinosaur with a bony tail club, measured nose to tail. | 8 m long | 76% of the size |
| TriceratopsThe three-horned plant-eater of Late Cretaceous North America, measured nose to tail. | 9 m long | 86% of the size |
| Quetzalcoatlus (Wings spread) | 10.5 m wingtip to wingtip | – |
| Tyrannosaurus rex (SUE, Field Museum)SUE, one of the largest and most complete T. rex skeletons. Measured snout to tail. | 12.34 m long | 1.2× bigger |
| TitanoboaA giant snake from the swamps of Paleocene Colombia, laid out straight. | 13 m long | 1.2× bigger |
In other units
| Centimetres | 1,050 |
|---|---|
| Metres | 10.5 |
| Inches | 413.4 |
| Feet | 34.45 |
| Yards | 11.48 |
How it's measured
Estimated wingspan. Range midpoint of 10-11 m (fragmentary fossils).
Known only from partial remains, so the size is an estimate and published figures vary.
Wingspan runs from one wingtip to the other with the wings fully spread.
The source gives a range, so this is the middle of it.
Sources
- journals.plos.org: Witton & Habib 2010, PLoS ONE: an approximate wingspan of 10-11 m.
Checked against the source on .
Could you have guessed it by eye?
Quetzalcoatlus is one of the objects in Prehistoric Giants, a daily size comparison game: you stretch a shape to the size you think is right beside one you know.