Researchers in Britain and China say they have discovered the fossils of a new type of flying reptile that lived over 160 million years ago.

Named Darwinopterus, after the famous naturalist Charles Darwin, it is a hawk-like reptile with a head and neck like advanced pterosaurs. Pterosaurs, sometimes called pterodactyls, were flying reptiles that flourished between 65 and 220 million years ago.

The research, which is to be published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B, is said to provide the first clear evidence of a controversial type of evolution called modular evolution. Twenty new fossils were found in the north-east of China and they show similarities to both primitive and more advanced pterosaurs.

Until now scientists had only known of two distinct groups of these creatures, primitive, long-tailed pterosaurs and more advanced short-tailed ones, separated by a large gap in the fossil record. This new discovery could provide the missing link in this evolutionary chain.

Possessing long jaws and rows of sharp-pointed teeth, Darwinopterus was well suited to catching and killing other flying species, scientists say. The fossilized remains were found in rocks that were 160 million years old, making them 10 million years older than the first bird, Archaeopteryx.