You are in the forested lakesides of Europe, 215 million years ago.

The Late Triassic sun beat down on the marshy Italian coastline, creating a shimmering haze over the horsetail ferns. You sat perfectly still, camouflaged against a limestone outcrop, watching the early evolution of flight unfold.

Without a sound, a Peteinosaurus landed on a low branch near you. It was smaller than you imagined—barely two feet from wingtip to wingtip—with a ridiculously long, wire-thin tail that finished in a small, rudder-like vane. It didn’t look like the giant, leathery monsters of later eras; it looked like a prehistoric dragonfly-eating machine.