The Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County (NHM) is inviting visitors to see the “Pterosaurs: Flight in the Age of Dinosaurs” exhibit before it closes on Sunday, Oct. 2. It is the largest exhibit dedicated to pterosaurs — diverse winged reptiles which were the first animals with a back bone to fly.

The exhibit includes many interactive displays, as well as depictions of different pterosaur crests. (photo ©AMNH/D. Finnin)

The exhibit includes rare casts from Italy, Germany, China, the United States, United Kingdom and Brazil, as well as life-size models, videos and interactive displays. Visitors will be immersed in the mechanics of pterosaur flight. The exhibit is complemented by NHM’s collection of pterosaur artifacts, including a giant crested pteranodon longiceps on display in the mezzanine of the Jane G. Pisano Dinosaur Hall.

The exhibit underscores newly revealed variations among the ancient creatures, which ranged from the size of a sparrow to a two-seat plane. The exhibit also explores how pterosaurs evolved to dominate the sky when dinosaurs roamed the Earth.

“This exhibition represents a remarkable moment in the wonderfully rich, vital area of pterosaur research and discovery,” said NHM president and director Lori Bettison-Varga,

The exhibit features dozens of casts and replicas of fossils from the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) collection and from museums around the world. The exhibition also includes a cast of the remains of an unknown species of giant pterosaur unearthed in Romania in 2012 by scientists working with the AMNH.

“Despite persistently captivating our popular imagination, pterosaurs are among the least well-understood large animals from the age of dinosaurs,” said AMNH president Ellen V. Futter. “This exhibition presents these fascinating winged reptiles, compares them to both dinosaurs of yesteryear and modern day birds and bats, and explores the biomechanics of pterosaur flight.”

Pterosaurs were not dinosaurs, although the two groups of creatures are closely related. The flying reptiles diversified into more than 150 species and spread throughout the planet over a period of 150 million years until they went extinct 66 million years ago.

NHM is located at 900 Exposition Blvd. For information, call (213)763-3218, www.nhm.org.