Silly qustion.

[Takama]

In some prehistoric fantasy films(example Dinotopia) People are depicted riding Pterosaurs like planes.  Now is it possable for that to happen without breaking the Pterosaurs back?

I ask this because the size estimates for the largest one (Quetzacauatalus) were only 200 some pounds, wheres a human might weight that much or lighter. It be like having to carry your buddy on your back for miles only in the sky, and if your back were to give out, you'd go hurtling toward Earth.


and i Plan on attempting my own prehistoric fantasy story that features people riding Pterosaurs,

[Gryphoceratops]

If I'm not mistaken I don't think that would be possible.  Pterosaurs were just too lightly built and its not like they had huge flapping muscles like modern raptors (which can lift pretty heavy objects for their size). 

[Metallisuchus]

Nah I don't see it happening. In fact, I've heard paleontologist comment on this as pure fantasy. As exciting as it is to learn the reality behind dinosaurs, it was also nice when your imagination would run wild as a kid. I look at the Dino-Riders thing, and I think "no way that dinosaur could hold all that metal on it's back!"

[ZoPteryx]

I agree with everyone above.  Even though the center of gravity would still be correct, an adult person would be too much even for a Quetzalcoatlus, a baby person might have better luck.  I think I read somewhere that a bird with the same wingspan as Quetzalcoatlus would way over twice as much (and likely wouldn't be able to fly); so pterosaurs are pretty much maxed out in size end weight.  And they could lift people off the ground with their feet either, like in JP 3.

[Metallisuchus]

Thanks Zopteryx! I forgot all about that. I was shocked to see a pterosaur taking off with a human in that film. That's way below JP standards, then again, wasn't the entire film??? I'll watch it just to look at the awesome job Stan Winston did, and to hear the musical brilliance of John Williams, but man they went so wrong with that film...

[Brontozaurus]

Thanks Zopteryx! I forgot all about that. I was shocked to see a pterosaur taking off with a human in that film. That's way below JP standards, then again, wasn't the entire film??? I'll watch it just to look at the awesome job Stan Winston did, and to hear the musical brilliance of John Williams, but man they went so wrong with that film...

Two words: frog DNA.

Am kind of annoyed to hear that riding pterosaurs would be impossible, because for the last few years I've had a story idea where it happens. Oh well.

[Thagirion]

It's too bad that sometimes to make an interesting story you can't be 100% realistic.  As a viewer/reader that's always a big gripe of mine since I scream for accuracy for what we know at the time. I'm forgiving of older films because I keep this in mind. "Well that's all they had at the time and didn't know better so it was good by those standards."  Now that I'm working on my own project it bugs me that I have to break two of my biggest pet peeves (dinos from different time periods and locations together) to make the characters work.  Only two mind you and because of this I'll have foot notes at the start saying that those two guys are wrong. Hehe, so yeah I even put a critic on my own stuff.  It's just a trap that basically all fantasy and sci fi falls into, unless you're working on a hypothetical documentary and those are awesome too.  I'd love to ride a pterosaur though.  It's funny because this is something that never crossed my mind though.

[SBell]

Thanks Zopteryx! I forgot all about that. I was shocked to see a pterosaur taking off with a human in that film. That's way below JP standards, then again, wasn't the entire film??? I'll watch it just to look at the awesome job Stan Winston did, and to hear the musical brilliance of John Williams, but man they went so wrong with that film...

Two words: frog DNA.

Am kind of annoyed to hear that riding pterosaurs would be impossible, because for the last few years I've had a story idea where it happens. Oh well.

Keeping in mind that in a world where pterosaurs and humans co-exist, is the reality of riding a pterosaur really the biggest stretch?

[Horridus]

Mark Witton says yes...they could. Maybe. Probably not for that long.

Thus, the pterosaur skeleton could take weight of a person without crumpling, but could it take off? It seems so: Marden (1994) calculated that a giant azhdarchid would find launch no more strenuous than a 1 kg vulture, suggesting that one could, theoretically, take on the extra burden of a person on its back. Perhaps only relatively small folks would be suitable pterosaur jockeys to reduce the strain as much as possible but, hey, that's still something, right?

http://pterosaur-net.blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/our-lives-with-pterosaurs-part-1.html

[CityRaptor]

Small folk he says?
So in other words: For Dino Rider it would be Llahd, while Youngstar and Serena better stay off their Pterosaurs.

[Metallisuchus]

Thanks Zopteryx! I forgot all about that. I was shocked to see a pterosaur taking off with a human in that film. That's way below JP standards, then again, wasn't the entire film??? I'll watch it just to look at the awesome job Stan Winston did, and to hear the musical brilliance of John Williams, but man they went so wrong with that film...

Two words: frog DNA.

Am kind of annoyed to hear that riding pterosaurs would be impossible, because for the last few years I've had a story idea where it happens. Oh well.

Keeping in mind that in a world where pterosaurs and humans co-exist, is the reality of riding a pterosaur really the biggest stretch?

C'mon man, don't be THAT guy, haha. Yeah of course it's a stretch, but the whole premise of those kinds of movies is a stretch. They should at least get the rest right.

[ZoPteryx]

Am kind of annoyed to hear that riding pterosaurs would be impossible, because for the last few years I've had a story idea where it happens. Oh well.

Pterosaurs could probably lift people if they had some 'mechanical assistance'.  Then again, people could fly themselves if they also had some mechanical assistance!

[stoneage]

Am kind of annoyed to hear that riding pterosaurs would be impossible, because for the last few years I've had a story idea where it happens. Oh well.

Pterosaurs could probably lift people if they had some 'mechanical assistance'.  Then again, people could fly themselves if they also had some mechanical assistance!

Maybe if you put a pterosaur on an airplane, then people could fly with him!