Pterodact

The Pterodact is an enemy fought in Chrono Cross. Pterodacts take on the appearance of creatures which are seemingly a cross between a parrot and a pterodactyl, with a bird-like head and a pair of leathery wings to boot. Found only in Gaea's Navel, these avian prehistoric creatures will only engage the party in battle when said party opens chests found in the tree-tops.

Battle and Strategy
Pterodacts usually appear alone or in pairs, but are known to be accompanied by either Prehysterics or PreyMantises. They attack either by using their wings as bats or by pecking, which is capable of inflicting fairly heavy amounts of damage in the process. Pterodacts are able to use a small range of Red elements, most of which are offensive ones, such as Fireball and Inferno. They also possess a special tech of their own, which is that of Flap. Flap allows Pterodacts to blow strong gusts of wind at their foes to inflict heavy amounts of damage. On the whole, Pterodacts may pose a fair challenge to unprepared players, and as such, caution should be exercised when facing these foes in battle.

Name Origin
The name of this enemy, Pterodact, takes its roots from the name of the prehistoric creature, the Pterosaur. Pterosaurs ( /ˈtɛrəsɔr/, from the Greek πτερόσαυρος, pterosauros, meaning "winged lizard") were flying reptiles of the clade or order Pterosauria. They existed from the late Triassic to the end of the Cretaceous Period (210 to 65.5 million years ago). In this case, the Pterodact bears an uncanny resemblance to the Pterosaur, though somewhat having a more rotund body shape.

The Japanese name of this enemy, Ptera, is merely a condensed version of the name Pterodactyl.

Related Enemies

 * Prehysteric
 * PreyMantis