Mark paul witton is a british vertebrate palaeontologist, author, and palaeoartist best known for his research and illustrations concerning pterosaurs, the extinct flying reptiles. The most authoritative illustrated book on flying reptiles availablefor 150 million years, the skies didnt belong to birdsthey belonged to the. Its great to see these creatures depicted as animals instead of movie monsters, including my favorite depictions of triceratops, pelorosaurus, quetzalcoatlus, and troodon. My technical research is focused on pterosaurs mesozoic flying reptiles but my artwork has introduced me to a wide array of different fossil animals that are just as interesting. He has served as a technical consultant for walking with dinosaurs 3d and many other film and television productions. Mark witton, and the place to buy highquality prints of my artwork. Witton is a pterosaur expert at the school of earh and.
Read 124 posts by mark witton and get access to exclusive content and experiences on the worlds largest membership platform for artists and creators. Mark wittons pterosaur book gives the reader the current up to date info on these fascinating flying creatures. If so, youll have been excited and intrigued by one of 20s best tetrapodthemed books. Oh and the one thing i forgot to talk about during the video involved is about pterosaur. His illustrations of pterosaurs, dinosaurs, and other prehistoric creatures have appeared in numerous publications, including science and newspapers. A disclaimer i should mention upfront is that mark and i are longstanding friends and colleagues. His illustrations of pterosaurs, dinosaurs, and other prehistoric creatures have appeared in numerous publications, including science and newspapers around the. For 150 million years, the skies didnt belong to birdsthey belonged to the pterosaurs.
In pterosaurs, authorpaleontologist mark p witton has written what is probably one of the most comprehensive treatment of these unique animals to date. Natural history, evolution, anatomy was published by princeton university press to critical acclaim. If youre truly invested in learning about pterosaurs, wittons book is a. The most authoritative illustrated book on flying reptiles available. Natural history, evolution, anatomy explores the anatomy, ecology and extinction of pterosaurs, in addition to being fully. Witton is a coffeetable size book rich in detail and lavishly illustrated. The most authoritative illustrated book on flying reptiles availablefo. Peter wellnhoffers the illustrated encyclopedia of pterosaurs 1991 is regarded by some including myself as the best of all such books, and david unwins the pterosaurs. I now make a living as a technical consultant on palaeontological documentaries, palaeoartist, graphic designer and author. Pteranogeddon by mark witton from his book pterosaurs.
This richly illustrated book takes an unprecedented look at these astonishing creatures, presenting the latest findings on their anatomy, ecology, and extinction. Mark p witton good pterosaur fossils are rare because, in life, their bones were expanded by air sacs to enhance their size and therefore wingspans without adding mass. Pterosaurs, published by princeton university press, is a criticallyacclaimed attempt to plug this obvious gap in popular scientific writing. If you would like to support his work please check out his. Although this well written book is accessible to the lay gargoyles and harpies. Witton is a paleontologist in the school of earth and environmental sciences at the university of portsmouth.
A beautiful and detailed book, but that is to be expected from mark witton. Pterosaurs is, of course, more up to date than either of these books. Witton is the most authoritative illustrated book on pterosaurs, aka flying reptiles, available. However, this new publication, written by palaeontologist and science writer mark witton entitled pterosaurs goes. Online home of freelance palaeoartist, consultant and palaeontological researcher dr. Natural history, evolution, anatomy i now know that practically everything the displays told me about pterosaurs, that they were incredibly light, fragile, clumsy creatures, walking on two legs, primitive in their evolutionary conception, were, while the wisdom of the time, entirely wrong. A great book about those famous extinct flying reptile by mark p. Mark witton of the university of portsmouth and mike habib of johns hopkins university suggested that pterosaurs used a vaulting mechanism to obtain flight. I last really looked at pterosaurs some 30 years ago, when as a fossilobsessed young teen, i haunted the paleontology section of the australian museum in sydney.
Only three truly comprehensive, popular books dedicated to pterosaurs have been published in this time, and only one this century, meaning much of the recent pterosaur renaissance the current surge in pterosaur discoveries and research beginning in the late 1980s remains untold outside of. For the latest updates, check out my blog and twitter feed. Why pterosaurs werent so scary after all science the. Its of small significance in this field of three modern pterosaur books. Mark witton s pterosaur book gives the reader the current up to date info on these fascinating flying creatures. The 2017 version of my collection of palaeoartworks. He is currently writing and illustrating a sequel to charles knights life through the ages. Only seven years passing between this book and the last, but the differences. The book doesnt shy away from technical terminology witton is exact in his use of pterosaur names, osteological landmarks, and other scientific details but the book is written in a. The tremendous power of their winged forelimbs would enable them to take off with ease. Despite 220 years of study, flying reptiles have received little attention from the popular press. Here, a 6 m wingpsan lower cretaceous pterosaur, ornithocheirus simus, demonstrates the.
Pterosaur trace fossils martin lockley and jerry harris 7. Pterosaur palaeobiogeography paul upchurch, richard butler, brian andres and paul barrett 8. Witton demolishes old myths about the pterosaurs, such as the myth that pterosaurs were primarily seabird analogues, the myth that pterosaurs were poor flyers, and the myth that pterosaurs were outcompeted by birds. Dear mark witton palaeoart i cannot find your gallery in. Posted oct 02, 2014 by todd simmons for the staten island advance. Mark wittons the palaeoartists handbook tetrapod zoology. Amongst the myriad of books published on the subject of long extinct. The major pterosaur bauplans of the species currently known. This is a substantial update on a scene from my 20 pterosaur book. Mark witton dr mark witton is a palaeontologist and palaeoartist, affiliated with the university of portsmouth, uk. When mark witton set out to write a book on pterosaurs, it must have been a daunting prospect to match the quality of older. Pterosaurs by mark witton pterosaurs dominated the skies during the time of the dinosaurs. They were remarkably diverse creatures, from the size of a sparrow to giants as tall as a giraffe, and were by far the largest creatures ever to fly. Mark witton s pterosaurs, an enormous, lavishly illustrated encyclopedia of all things pterosaur.