Pteranodon
Pteranodon (; from Greek πτερόν ( pteron, "wing") and ἀνόδων (anodon, "toothless") is a genus of pterosaur that included some of the largest known flying reptiles, with wingspans over 8 meters (26 feet). They lived during the late Cretaceous geological period of North America in present-day Kansas, Alabama, Nebraska, Wyoming, and South Dakota. More fossil specimens of "Pteranodon" have been found than any other pterosaur, with about 1,200 specimens known to science, many of them well preserved with nearly complete skulls and articulated skeletons. It was an important part of the animal community in the Western Interior Seaway.
Pteranodon
Specimens assigned to "Pteranodon" have been found in both the Smoky Hill Chalk deposits of the Niobrara Formation, and the slightly younger Sharon Springs deposits of the Pierre Shale Formation. When "Pteranodon" was alive, this area was covered by a large inland sea, known as the Western Interior Seaway. Famous for fossils collected since 1870, these formations extend from as far south as Kansas in the United States to Manitoba in Canada. However, "Pteranodon" specimens (or any pterosaur specimens) have only been found in the southern half of the formation, in Kansas, Wyoming, and South Dakota. Despite the fact that numerous fossils have been found in the contemporary parts of the formation in Canada, no pterosaur specimens have ever been found there. This strongly suggests that the natural geographic range of "Pteranodon" covered only the southern part of the Niobrara, and that its habitat did not extend farther north than South Dakota.