thumb|Quetzalcoatlus models in South Bank, created by Mark Witton for the Royal Society's 350th anniversary Pterosaurs have been a staple of popular culture for as long as their cousins the dinosaurs, though they are usually not featured as prominently in films, literature or other art. While the depiction of dinosaurs in popular media has changed radically in response to advances in paleontology, a mainly outdated picture of pterosaurs has persisted since the mid-20th century. thumb|left|Scene from When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth depicting an outsized Rhamphorhynchus The vague generic term "pterodactyl" is often used for these creatures. The animals depicted in fiction and pop culture frequently represent either the Pteranodon or (non-pterodactyloid) Rhamphorhynchus, or a fictionalized hybrid of the two.Hone, D. (2010). "Pterosaurs In Popular Culture." Pterosaur.net, Accessed 27 August 2010. Many children's toys and cartoons feature "pterodactyls" with Pteranodon-like crests and long, Rhamphorhynchus-like tails and teeth, a combination that never existed in nature. However, at least one pterosaur did have both the Pteranodon-like crest and teeth: Ludodactylus, whose name means "toy finger" for its resemblance to old, inaccurate children's toys.Frey, E., Martill, D., and Buchy, M. (2003). "A new crested ornithocheirid from the Lower Cretaceous of northeastern Brazil and the unusual death of an unusual pterosaur" in: Buffetaut, E., and Mazin, J.-M. (eds.). Evolution and Palaeobiology of Pterosaurs. Geological Society Special Publication 217: 56–63. . Pterosaurs have sometimes been incorrectly identified as (the ancestors of) birds, though birds are theropod dinosaurs and not descendants of pterosaurs.
thumb|Quetzalcoatlus models in South Bank, created by Mark Witton for the Royal Society's 350th anniversary Pterosaurs have been a staple of popular culture for as long as their cousins the dinosaurs, though they are usually not featured as prominently in films, literature or other art. While the depiction of dinosaurs in popular media has changed radically in response to advances in paleontology, a mainly outdated picture of pterosaurs has persisted since the mid-20th century. thumb|left|Scene from When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth depicting an outsized Rhamphorhynchus The vague generic term "pterodactyl" is often used for these creatures The animals depicted in fiction and pop culture frequently represent either the Pteranodon or (non-pterodactyloid) Rhamphorhynchus, or a fictionalized hybrid of the two.Hone, D. (2010). "Pterosaurs In Popular Culture." Pterosaur.net, Accessed 27 August 2010. Many children's toys and cartoons feature "pterodactyls" with Pteranodon-like crests and long, Rhamphorhynchus-like tails and teeth, a combination that never existed in nature. However, at least one pterosaur did have both the Pteranodon-like crest and teeth: Ludodactylus, whose name means "toy finger" for its resemblance to old, inaccurate children's toys.Frey, E., Martill, D., and Buchy, M. (2003). "A new crested ornithocheirid from the Lower Cretaceous of northeastern Brazil and the unusual death of an unusual pterosaur" in: Buffetaut, E., and Mazin, J.-M (eds.). Evolution and Palaeobiology of Pterosaurs Geological Society Special Publication 217: 56–63. . Pterosaurs have sometimes been incorrectly identified as (the ancestors of) birds, though birds are theropod dinosaurs and not descendants of pterosaurs.