Oxygen is necessary to sustain most terrestrial life. Oxygen is used in cellular respiration and many major classes of organic molecules in living organisms contain oxygen, such as proteins, nucleic acids, carbohydrates, and fats, as do the major constituent inorganic compounds of animal shells, teeth, and bone.
From wingtip to wingtip, P. sandersi measured at least 6.4 meters. The wandering albatross, the worldâs largest living bird, has a wingspan of 3.5 meters, and the giant, extinct South American condor, Argentavis magnificens, was right around 6 meters.
He added that while it is not possible to know everything about the ancient creature from one skeleton, he is quite certain about one thing: âThis is pushing the boundary of what we know about avian size, and Iâm very confident that the wingspan is the largest weâve seen in a bird capable of flight.â